LOS ANGELES – Statistically, Max Homa had a 99.57% chance of converting the 3-footed bird into 72WL hole of the Genesis Invitational, but then there is no room for statistics in the chambers of the human heart.
In 11 events this season on the PGA Tour Homa, which is as LA as palm trees and Dodger dogs, it was predictably automatic, like most types of Tour, at that distance. But not all three feet are created equal and the birdie and victory slider at the event means more to him than any other could have been 30 feet.
Homa, who grew up 30 minutes north of the Riviera, admitted he was “shaking like a leaf” about the game’s winner on the iconic 18º hole and the only saving grace was that the empty pandemic gallery was not there for a collective sigh.
“Honestly, I was a little nervous,” admitted Homa. “This tournament means a lot to me. I was a little shaky. “
This was much more than a second win on the Tour or a check from the winner. Homa has been coming to the old LA Open since “I was basically a baby”. His father brought him to the event for the first time when he was 2 years old and he grew up devouring soft pretzels and hanging around the rope for hours selling autographs.
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When the winning shot brushed the rim of the cup before rolling away, there was an eerie silence. Careers were hindered by less and “I lost a 3-footer to win the big one” is a title that does not come out easily.
But it looked different. Despite the nervous flaw, there seemed to be an outside calm for Homa that belied the importance of the Los Angeles stop for the 30-year-old.
It wasn’t like that a year ago, when he started the last round at the Riviera just three kicks from the lead. Getting so close to a childhood dream was expensive and he closed with a 70 that included premature bogeys in numbers 16 and 18. But the failure of 2020 came the 2021 conviction.
Homa hits after losing a potential victory shot
“I really think last year helped, seeing my name go up in second place with Adam Scott at 15, I had that engraved in my memory,” said Homa. “I kind of came to this event, especially today and yesterday, knowing that I did really well last year, I just needed to correct a mistake or two.”
The final “mistake” at hole 72 approached and the exhausting walk to the Riviera clubhouse did little to calm Homa’s fast-paced mind after his pair of strokes in the last to finish 12 under par alongside Tony Finau , who was dealing with his own Sunday demons.
The stimulating conversations came quickly.
“This is our city. This is your tournament. This is your golf course. This is our tournament to win, ”Homa’s caddy and longtime friend Joe Greiner told him.
Homa called his wife, Lacey.
“I think I choked a little,” he stammered.
She quickly reminded Homa that he had just converted a 2.13 meter birdie at 17º hole and he was still ready for a playoff. She also reminded him of the day’s message she sent before he started: “Forgive quickly.”
Homa defeats Finau in the playoff to win the Genesis Invitational
Homa seemed to forgive and forget his mistake on the 18thº hole in the playoff. Starting at par 4 10º Buraco Homa and Finau hit fairway woods to the left of the green, it was, again statistically, the correct move, but Homa’s ball hit a tree.
“He was very calm so I thought we couldn’t hit the green [from beside the tree]”Said Greiner. “He said, ‘I get it’. He thought he could actually get closer than that and I was thinking of hitting the ledge 15 feet away. “
Homa attached a 50-degree hooded wedge to the lawn at 3.6 meters for a pair of two strokes and a push. On the second extra hole, your starting shot at par 3 14º rolled to 12 feet and won with a two anticlimax putt and a Finau failure.
Homa, a longtime fan of the Dodgers, would have preferred the win in the 18th, but he is very happy with the victory in the extra entries. As his childhood hero, Tommy Lasorda, once said, “I love double games. That way I can keep my uniform for longer. “
He will also have a good deal of confidence with the resilience he needed after the failure in 72WL hole and the unlucky jump on the first playoff hole. Asked where this win ranked Homa offered a predictable rating, “1-A, 1-B, 1-C.”
The fact that he was the host of the tournament, Tiger Woods, handing him the trophy after a day of marathon, only heightened a dream that he admitted that his 6-year-old version probably could not have imagined.
“I don’t know if I could do anything more cool in golf than that,” he said. “Just for me, for my caddy Joe, we were raised 40 kilometers north of here. I mean, Tiger Woods is handing us a trophy, it’s a very crazy thought. We grew up worshiping him, worshiping the Riviera Country Club, worshiping the golf tournament. To do this, it is almost shocking. “
No, what was shocking was the atypical failure at 72WL hole, but that only made Homa’s emotionally charged victory more satisfying.