Jimmy Walker In Familiar Spot Atop FedEx Cup Standings
By Les Bailey
Sep 27, 2014; Auchterarder, Perthshire, SCT; USA golfer Rickie Fowler gets a hug by Jimmy Walker after making a birdie putt on hole 8 as they walk off the green during day two of the 2014 Ryder Cup at Gleneagles Resort – PGA Centenary Course. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
After five starts in the new FedEx Cup season that includes a win at the Sony Open last week, and a questionable second place finish at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions, Jimmy Walker finds himself in a familiar position. The 36 year-old Baylor grad has a 143 point lead over McGladery champ, Robert Streb in the FedEx Cup points standings.
Jimmy Walker
got revenge after he let the Hyundai TOC get away in the final round, and rode a new late-game philosophy to a nine shot lead on Sunday at the Sony Open.
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It appeared that he got very conservative at Kapalua on Monday, and after a terrible shot on the 14th hole where his lead started to evaporate, he could never recover. He opened the door for Patrick Reed, and Reed drove a semi-truck through the opening.
With a four-shot lead to start the final round on Sunday at Waialae, Jimmy Walker kept his foot on the throttle, and ran his lead up to nine shots over Scott Piercy to get his first win in the new season.
Jimmy Walker rode three early wins in 2014 to a T8 in the Masters and a trip to Gleneagles in September.
He led the FedEx Cup points for the lion’s share of the season, dropping to 7th place after a T7 at the PGA Championship. Walker ended the season in the seventh spot.
Although he finished 2014 with three wins, ten top ten finishes, and making 23 of 27 cuts, Walker never won another tournament after the tour left the West Coast.
Much to-do has been made about Rickie Fowler finishing in the top ten in all four majors, but Jimmy Walker finished in single digits in three of the four. Only a T26 finish at Royal Liverpool kept him from equaling Fowler’s feat.
Walker finished T8 at the Masters, T9 in the US Open at Pinehurst, and T7 at Valhalla. He finished T6 at the players. In my opinion, the Oklahoman had a better 2014 season than the aforementioned Rickie Fowler.
"At his advanced age, Jimmy Walker is what tough Americans are all about. After years of struggling when he got a chance at the “Big Show” only needing to return to the Q School, and Web.com Tour to keep his dream alive."
In 2006, he only made nine cuts in 21 starts on the PGA Tour, and logged only one top 25 finish. His early career was plagued with some injuries, and some horrible seasons.
It started to turn around in the 2011 season when he picked up four T4 finishes, and qualified for the BMW Championship for the first time during the playoffs.
Walker made some progress in 2012, finishing the season 43rd in the FedEx Cup standings, but 2013 was where he found the game we see today.
He made 25 consecutive cuts from the 2012 John Deere Classic through the 2013 Memorial Tournament. During this run, Walker had finishes of T2, T3 and T4 as he finished the 2013 season with over $2 million in prize money for the first time.
I think Jimmy Walker’s career has finally gotten him to the place where he can be a significant player on any tour. As we saw during the past two weeks, he is still learning the game, and more importantly, learning how to win.
With another early win in 2015, not only is Jimmy Walker on top of the FedEx Cup standings again, he is also enjoying a 13th place ranking in the Official World Golf Rankings.
Although he has played well across the nation, and around the world, I want to see him win a tournament somewhere West of the Mississippi River, against a full field of world-classed players.
He’s had some nice finishes in the majors, but it’s time for him to contend for the lead in a couple of them. I think it is going to happen soon, maybe this year.
We can’t say that Jimmy Walker is a great up and coming young player, but is a player on the move, and the moves are all up!