October 23 belongs to golfers who made a point with the way they finished—from a bunker hole-out and six straight birdies to two stars claiming deeply personal victories on the same 2022 Sunday.
1935
Chi Chi Rodriguez is born in Puerto Rico
Juan Antonio “Chi Chi” Rodriguez was born in Río Piedras, Puerto Rico. He grew into one of golf’s great showmen—and a Hall of Fame career that included eight PGA Tour victories, 22 PGA Tour Champions titles and the unmistakable sword-dance celebration. [Hall of Fame]
His impact reached well beyond tournament golf. Rodriguez’s youth foundation used the game to teach responsibility and discipline to children from low-income families.
2005
Lucas Glover holes out from the sand for his first Tour win
Glover reached the 18th hole of the FUNAI Classic tied for the lead, then holed a 35-foot bunker shot for birdie. His closing 65 and 23-under total of 265 delivered a one-stroke victory and the first PGA Tour title of his career. [PGA Tour] [interview]
2011
Luke Donald makes six straight birdies when only a win will do
Donald began the final round of the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals Classic five shots behind and needing a victory to overtake Webb Simpson on the PGA Tour money list. He answered with six consecutive birdies from No. 10, shot 64 and won by two at 17-under 271. [European Tour]
The finish helped Donald become the first player to lead the PGA Tour and European Tour money lists in the same season.
2011
Sergio Garcia wins by 11 at his home course
On the same day in Spain, Garcia closed with a 63 to win the Castelló Masters at Club de Campo del Mediterráneo—the course where he had won the club championship at age 12. He finished at 27-under, 11 shots clear, and dedicated his first victory in nearly three years to Seve Ballesteros. [European Tour]
2022
Rory McIlroy wins the CJ Cup and returns to world No. 1
McIlroy shot a final-round 67 at Congaree Golf Club and finished at 17-under 267, one stroke ahead of Kurt Kitayama. The successful title defense was his 23rd PGA Tour victory and returned him to No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking for the ninth time. [PGA Tour]
2022
Lydia Ko wins in the country of her birth
Hours earlier in Wonju, Ko erased a one-stroke deficit with eight birdies and a closing 65 at the BMW Ladies Championship. Her 21-under total of 267 was four better than Andrea Lee and delivered Ko’s 18th LPGA Tour title—and her first professional victory in South Korea, where she was born. [LPGA]
The win carried more than ranking points. Ko had moved to New Zealand at age four, but returned to win in front of family and a home-country gallery.
FROM THE ARCHIVE TO YOUR NEXT ROUND / FOX BANDIT VIEW
Separate the memorable finish from the useful lesson
Glover’s bunker hole-out is the shot that makes a highlight reel. Donald’s six-birdie run and Ko’s eight-birdie Sunday offer a different kind of spectacle. None is a sensible baseline for a weekend golfer deciding whether a practice session worked.
A useful short-game target is simpler: get the ball onto the putting surface and leave a putt you can manage. A chip that finishes six feet away can be a sound result even when the putt misses. A holed chip is wonderful, but counting only those shots would disguise the quality of the rest of the session.
Set out ten varied greenside lies and play one ball from each, using a normal routine. Record balls on the green, first-putt distance and total strokes to finish. Repeat the test another day before changing the target. The objective is to make the ordinary result more dependable, giving the exceptional one somewhere to land.
Practice the putt that comes next ↗