FAYETTEVILLE - Former University of Arkansas golfer David Lingmerth, a virtually unknown rookie on the PGA Tour, drove his career path into the express lane with a big weekend at The Players Championship in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.
Lingmerth, who played at Arkansas in 2008-2010, was tied for the lead after 54 holes of the tour’s highest-paying event at TPC Sawgrass, fell behind Tiger Woods by four strokes on Sunday, then rallied to within a stroke before missing a 61-foot birdie putt on No. 18 that would have forced a playoff with Woods, the winner of 78 PGA Tour events, including 14 majors.
An even-par final round of 72 left Lingmerth, a 25-yearold Swede, two shots behind Woods in a three-way tie for second and earned him the biggest paycheck of his four-month PGA career: $709,333.33.
“It was a great week overall,” Lingmerth said Sunday when meeting with members of the media afterward. “I felt like [I had] a good couple of chances there towards the end, and just didn’t putt very well. … I felt like I left a lot of shots out there.”
Arkansas Coach Brad Mc-Makin, who described Lingmerth as “unflappable,” said he talked to Lingmerth the night before his final round and again Sunday night after Lingmerth’s near-playoff with Woods.
“He said he was disappointed and that he wasn’t playing the last day just to make a good check,” McMakin said. “He said, ‘I felt good about my game, I just made a couple of mistakes. I’m going to sleep pretty good knowing my bank account is going to be in good shape in the morning.’ ”
Lingmerth, in his 13th PGA event, has advanced rapidly since he helped the Razorbacks to a second-place finish in the 2010 NCAA Championships while playing with a partially torn Achilles tendon. Lingmerth earned his PGA Tour card for 2013 after spending two seasons on the Web.com Tour, the second season ending with a 10thplace finish on the money list.
Sunday’s paycheck shot Lingmerth from No. 69 to No. 29 on the PGA Tour money list with $1,263,104 in earnings, assuring him a spot on the tour in 2014. He is 31st in the FedEx Cup standings and is No. 91 in the world rankings, up from No. 167 last week.
“Now all the pressure is off him to keep the card,” Mc-Makin said. “I think this week will shoot him into a different category with his game.”
The TPC was Lingmerth’s second top-five finish this season - he also tied for second after losing in a playoff in the Humana Challenge in his second career start -but the setting at TPC Sawgrass in what is considered the Tour’s fifth major, and the high-profile company he kept over the weekend has elevated Lingmerth’s profile.
He played in the final round with Spaniard Sergio Garcia and wound up chasing the world’s best golfer in Woods for much of the day.
“Mentally, the guy went head to head with Tiger and Tiger had a good week,” Mc-Makin said. “He didn’t look out of his element yesterday. I’m proud of the way he handled himself. I think you’re going to see a lot more of David Lingmerth the next 10 years.”
Lingmerth’s weekend run earned the attention of former Razorback and PGA winner John Daly, who Tweeted “Arkansas Proud!” to Lingmerth’s account.
The Swede also picked up a nickname Monday from the Golf Network analyst Damon Hack, who described the 5-7, 175-pound Lingmerth as “Pocket Hercules” for his ability to generate power from his small frame.
Lingmerth came into the weekend having missed five consecutive cuts and 8 of 10since his second-place showing at the Humana Challenge, where he won $492,800.
“It’s a little bit of an improvement, that’s for sure,” Lingmerth told The Golf Channel’s Will Gray of his big TPC finish after missing five consecutive cuts. “When I’m on, I’m on.”
McMakin said McMakin’s maturity was impressive.
“He looked like he belonged on the camera, in the media,” he said. “He approached it the right way. He wasn’t going out to beat Tiger Woods on the last day. He was going out there to shoot a good score.”
Lingmerth told reporters he was in it to win it.
“A lot of big names were up on the leaderboard, so it’s fun to contend with those guys, and I felt comfortable out there all day and all week. If I get that chance again, I hope I can take it to another level.”
Late Sunday, Lingmerth posted this Twitter message to his followers: “Wow! Thank you so much for all the kind words. I gave it all I had, unfortunately today that wasn’t enough. There will be more chances.”
Sports, Pages 17 on 05/14/2013