• Matt Kuchar survived some shaky play down the stretch and rattled in a par putt from just inside three feet on 18 to shoot a final-round 69 for a one-stroke victory over Danny Lee (65) at the Mayakoba Golf Classic on Sunday.

• “It feels extra sweet having kind of had to suffer through a year of not playing great in 2018,” said Kuchar, whose last victory before today came at the 2014 RBC Heritage in Hilton Head, South Carolina. “Being four years removed since my last victory I realize how difficult it is to win on the PGA TOUR.”

• With his regular caddie, John Wood, at a reunion, Kuchar won with a club caddie, David “Toucan” Ortiz, who had been assigned to him by the tournament director. Ortiz, a father of two from Playa del Carmen who caddies every day at El Camaleon Golf Club, was in tears as he accepted congratulations and rolled up the flag on 18 as a souvenir.

ESPN report…

• Lee Westwood bagged five birdies on his back nine to storm to victory in the Nedbank Golf Challenge at the Gary Player Country Club on Sunday, his first title on the European Tour for four years.

• Westwood, 45, carded a faultless 64 that included an eagle and six birdies for a tournament total of 15 under-par, three shots ahead of overnight leaderSergio Garcia.

• The Spaniard, who had led from the first round into Sunday, could only manage a 70 as his two-shot overnight advantage was swallowed up by a magnificent finish from Westwood.

• The Englishman secured a 24th European Tour title, the eighth most of all time, and a third at the Nedbank Golf Challenge after previous wins in 2010, when he was ranked the No.1 golfer in the world, and 2011.

• “I’m a bit emotional,” a tearful Westwood told reporters. “You are never sure if you can do it again. And I needed to.”

• “It was his third win of the season, yet only his fourth on the senior tour. Twenty-two of his 34 PGA Tour victories that landed him in the World Golf Hall of Fame came in his 40s.”

• “Singh’s victory paved the way for the seemingly ageless Bernhard Langer to win the season-long Charles Schwab Cup yet again. Langer, 61, won the cup and a $1 million bonus for the fourth in the last five years and fifth time overall.”

• “It never gets old,” Langer said. “At age 61 to do it is quite an achievement. Maybe there’s another one in me, you never know.”

Full piece.

• Sometimes when you scrawl your name into the record book the achievement is amplified by the names next to yours. And sometime when success arrives the thrill of victory is intensified by the obstacles overcome. Both were true for Gaby Lopez on Saturday when her one-stroke victory in the Blue Bay LPGA united her with the legendary Lorena Ochoa as the only tour winners from Mexico after Gaby persevered in a gutsy final-round showdown with the two top players in the world.

• Before the round, Lopez made it clear she was playing for her country as she dressed in the national colors of Mexico and after she held off Rolex No. 1 Ariya Jutanugarn, the 25-year-old product of the University of Arkansas dedicated the trophy to her grandfather, Jose Lopez, who died earlier this year.

The Forecaddie suggests there could be a seismic shift in the world of driver sponsorship on the PGA Tour ahead, of which Justin Rose’s move to Honma is an indication.

• “While an industry source confirmed plans for the move to The Forecaddie – even as Rose is refusing to affirm for obvious contractual reasons – expect the 20-year TaylorMade man to slowly ease into his new partnership. Europe’s highest-ranked player will stick with his TaylorMade woods until he’s comfortable moving to Honma’s gear and is even sticking with the TaylorMade TP5 ball for the foreseeable future.”

• “The Man Out Front also hears Rose is not the only Honma adoptee in 2019, with at least one high-profile player already signed and possibly as many as two more names you know headed to the company leaning on former TaylorMade CEO Mark King for guidance as it expands into markets outside of Asia. Not coincidentally, King signed Rose two decades ago.”

• “TMOF is hearing from agents that TaylorMade is reducing its program paying middle-tier Tour players to use their big sticks. New owner KPS Capital Partners is pinning its marketing hopes on big names and recent high-priced signees. With Rory McIlroy, Jason Day, Dustin Johnson and Tiger Woods leading the way, that’s an impressive roster of marketing firepower.”

Full piece.

• Shack writes…”Golfweek’s Eamon Lynch reports on the red-hot rumor mill that had players gossiping in recent weeks about a positive test result at the Ryder Cup. Lynch explains on the surprise (Bonjour!) test administered at the team hotels by France’s AFLD, still smarting from the Tour de France issues over the years.”

• Lynch…”All the results are in and there were no positive tests,” said Maggie Durand, a spokeswoman for the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), to which the French AFLD affiliate reported its findings. When asked about the method of testing, WADA confirmed it was urinalysis. And about the players tested? In the event of a negative test, public disclosure is up to the athlete, WADA echoed.”

• “So with participation numbers dwindling and clubs struggling, are the kids now having less influence from within the family to take up the game? Is the drop in adult participation affecting the influx from the juniors? That’s worrying, as it’s never been easier, or more affordable (relatively speaking) to get into a golf club. 25 years ago there was waiting lists and huge joining fees. Not now. You can pretty much join up anywhere with little or no joining fee. This trend looks like continuing with the variety of alternatives out there – with little or no encouragement, what incentive is there for a junior to go out in the wind and rain to learn a game that it is deemed expensive and time consuming, and one that takes years to learn when you know you’ll never master it?”

• “Hopefully some of Scotland’s youngsters could take inspiration from the Scots at the elite level of the game – but who exactly would that be? At the time of writing there is ONE Scot in the top 100 of the official golf world rankings. Russell Knox at 59. The next best placed is Martin Laird who isn’t even in the top 150 at present. Both of these guys are based in the US but their skills were honed in Inverness and Glasgow respectively. In the cold and wet. Like the Lyle’s, Torrance’s and Montgomerie’s before them. We invented this game and that is what we have to show for it?

• Can you imagine the outcry if the United States stopped producing football players, the Canadians gave up on their ice hockey, or heaven forbid, the All Blacks became an also ran in the Rugby world? So why do we accept it?”