2018 WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play

The 2018 WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play was the 20th WGC Match Play, played March 21–25 at Austin Country Club in Austin, Texas. It was the second of four World Golf Championships in 2018.

2018 WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play
Tournament information
DatesMarch 21–25, 2018
LocationAustin, Texas, U.S.
30°20′35″N 97°47′49″W / 30.343°N 97.797°W / 30.343; -97.797
Course(s)Austin Country Club
Tour(s)PGA Tour
European Tour
Japan Golf Tour
FormatMatch play – 18 holes
Statistics
Par71
Length7,108 yards (6,500 m)
Field64 players
Prize fund$10,000,000
8,168,600
Winner's share$1,700,000
€1,388,662
Champion
United States Bubba Watson
def. Kevin Kisner 7 & 6
Location map
Austin is located in the United States
Austin
Austin
Location in the United States
Austin is located in Texas
Austin
Austin
Location in Texas
← 2017
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Field

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The field consisted of the top 64 players available from the Official World Golf Ranking on March 11.[1] However, the seedings were based on the World Rankings on March 18.

Justin Rose (ranked 5th on March 12, personal reasons),[2] Rickie Fowler (7th, personal reasons), Brooks Koepka (8th, wrist injury),[3] Henrik Stenson (15th, personal reasons),[4] Adam Scott (56th, personal reasons), and Joost Luiten (67th, wrist injury) did not compete, allowing entry for Kevin Na (ranked 65th), Charles Howell III (66th), Keegan Bradley (68th), Luke List (69th), and Julian Suri (70th).

Format

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In 2014 and earlier editions, the championship was a single elimination match play event. A new format was introduced in 2015, and the championship now starts with pool play, with 16 groups of four players playing round-robin matches, on Wednesday through Friday. The top 16 seeded players are allocated to the 16 groups, one in each group. The remaining 48 players are placed into three pools (seeds 17–32, seeds 33–48, seeds 49–64). Each group has one player randomly selected from each pool to complete the group.[5]

All group play matches are limited to 18 holes with one point awarded for a win and one-half point for a halved match. Only one player advances to the weekend from each of the 16 groupings. After all 3 rounds are played, if 2 or more players are tied for first place in their group, then they play a sudden-death stroke play playoff, beginning on hole 1 and moving beyond if necessary.[5]

The winners of each group advance to a single-elimination bracket on the weekend, with the round of 16 and quarterfinals on Saturday, and the semi-finals, finals, and consolation match on Sunday.[5]

Pool A – Top 16 seeds
Seed Rank Player
1 1   Dustin Johnson
2 2   Justin Thomas
3 3   Jon Rahm
4 4   Jordan Spieth
5 6   Hideki Matsuyama
6 7   Rory McIlroy
7 10   Sergio García
8 11   Jason Day
9 12   Tommy Fleetwood
10 13   Paul Casey
11 15   Marc Leishman
12 16   Tyrrell Hatton
13 17   Alex Norén
14 18   Phil Mickelson
15 19   Pat Perez
16 20   Matt Kuchar
Pool B
Seed Rank Player
17 21   Rafa Cabrera-Bello
18 22   Brian Harman
19 23   Patrick Reed
20 24   Xander Schauffele
21 25   Francesco Molinari
22 26   Charley Hoffman
23 27   Branden Grace
24 28   Gary Woodland
25 29   Louis Oosthuizen
26 30   Daniel Berger
27 31   Ross Fisher
28 32   Kiradech Aphibarnrat
29 33   Tony Finau
30 34   Patrick Cantlay
31 35   Matt Fitzpatrick
32 36   Kevin Kisner
Pool C
Seed Rank Player
33 37   Kevin Chappell
34 38   Li Haotong
35 39   Bubba Watson
36 40   Brendan Steele
37 41   Webb Simpson
38 42   Adam Hadwin
39 43   Thomas Pieters
40 44   Satoshi Kodaira
41 45   Dylan Frittelli
42 45   Jason Dufner
43 47   Chez Reavie
44 48   Jhonattan Vegas
45 49   Kyle Stanley
46 50   Cameron Smith
47 51   Yuta Ikeda
48 52   Patton Kizzire
Pool D
Seed Rank Player
49 53   Charl Schwartzel
50 54   Kim Si-woo
51 55   Russell Henley
52 56   Bernd Wiesberger
53 57   Yūsaku Miyazato
54 58   Zach Johnson
55 60   Alexander Lévy
56 62   James Hahn
57 63   Peter Uihlein
58 64   Ian Poulter
59 65   Charles Howell III
60 67   Luke List
61 68   Kevin Na
62 69   Shubhankar Sharma
63 70   Keegan Bradley
64 72   Julian Suri

RankOfficial World Golf Ranking on March 19, 2018.

Results

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Pool play

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Players were divided into 16 groups of four players and played round-robin matches Wednesday to Friday.

  • Round 1 – March 21
  • Round 2 – March 22
  • Round 3 – March 23
Group 1
Round Winner Score Loser
1 Wiesberger 3 & 1 D. Johnson
Kisner vs Hadwin – halved
2 Hadwin 4 & 3 D. Johnson
Kisner 5 & 4 Wiesberger
3 Kisner 4 & 3 D. Johnson
Hadwin vs Wiesberger – halved
Seed Player W L H Points Finish
32   Kevin Kisner 2 0 1 2.5 1
38   Adam Hadwin 1 0 2 2 2
52   Bernd Wiesberger 1 1 1 1.5 3
1   Dustin Johnson 0 3 0 0 4
Group 2
Round Winner Score Loser
1 Thomas 2 up List
Molinari 3 & 1 Kizzire
2 Thomas 3 & 1 Kizzire
Molinari 3 & 2 List
3 Thomas 7 & 5 Molinari
Kizzire 4 & 2 List
Seed Player W L H Points Finish
2   Justin Thomas 3 0 0 3 1
21   Francesco Molinari 2 1 0 2 2
48   Patton Kizzire 1 2 0 1 3
60   Luke List 0 3 0 0 4
Group 3
Round Winner Score Loser
1 Rahm vs Bradley – halved
Aphibarnrat 3 & 2 Reavie
2 Reavie 1 up Rahm
Aphibarnrat 1 up Bradley
3 Aphibarnrat 4 & 3 Rahm
Reavie vs Bradley – halved
Seed Player W L H Points Finish
28   Kiradech Aphibarnrat 3 0 0 3 1
43   Chez Reavie 1 1 1 1.5 2
63   Keegan Bradley 0 1 2 1 3
3   Jon Rahm 0 2 1 0.5 4
Group 4
Round Winner Score Loser
1 Spieth 2 & 1 Schwartzel
Reed 3 & 2 Li
2 Spieth 4 & 2 Li
Reed 2 up Schwartzel
3 Reed 2 & 1 Spieth
Schwartzel 3 & 2 Li
Seed Player W L H Points Finish
19   Patrick Reed 3 0 0 3 1
4   Jordan Spieth 2 1 0 2 2
49   Charl Schwartzel 1 2 0 1 3
34   Li Haotong 0 3 0 0 4
Group 5
Round Winner Score Loser
1 Matsuyama 2 & 1 Miyazato
Smith 2 up Cantlay
2 Smith 1 up Matsuyama
Cantlay 1 up Miyazato
3 Cantlay 4 & 3 Matsuyama
Smith vs Miyazato – halved
Seed Player W L H Points Finish
46   Cameron Smith 2 0 1 2.5 1
30   Patrick Cantlay 2 1 0 2 2
5   Hideki Matsuyama 1 2 0 1 3
53   Yūsaku Miyazato 0 2 1 0.5 4
Group 6
Round Winner Score Loser
1 Uihlein 2 & 1 McIlroy
Harman vs Vegas – halved
2 McIlroy 2 & 1 Vegas
Harman 3 & 2 Uihlein
3 Harman 5 & 3 McIlroy
Uihlein 4 & 3 Vegas
Seed Player W L H Points Finish
18   Brian Harman 2 0 1 2.5 1
57   Peter Uihlein 2 1 0 2 2
6   Rory McIlroy 1 2 0 1 3
44   Jhonattan Vegas 0 2 1 0.5 4
Group 7
Round Winner Score Loser
1 García 1 up Sharma
Schauffele 1 up Frittelli
2 García 2 up Frittelli
Schauffele 2 & 1 Sharma
3 García 3 & 1 Schauffele
Frittelli 1 up Sharma
Seed Player W L H Points Finish
7   Sergio García 3 0 0 3 1
20   Xander Schauffele 2 1 0 2 2
41   Dylan Frittelli 1 2 0 1 3
62   Shubhankar Sharma 0 3 0 0 4
Group 8
Round Winner Score Loser
1 Day 4 & 2 Hahn
Oosthuizen 1 up Dufner
2 Dufner 3 & 1 Day
Hahn 3 & 1 Oosthuizen
3 Oosthuizen 2 up Day
Dufner 3 & 2 Hahn
Seed Player W L H Points Finish
25   Louis Oosthuizen 2 1 0 2 1
42   Jason Dufner 2 1 0 2 2
8   Jason Day 1 2 0 1 T3
56   James Hahn 1 2 0 1 T3
  • Oosthuizen advanced in sudden-death playoff over Dufner – 1 hole
Group 9
Round Winner Score Loser
1 Poulter 3 & 2 Fleetwood
Chappell 3 & 2 Berger
2 Fleetwood 7 & 6 Chappell
Poulter 2 & 1 Berger
3 Fleetwood 2 & 1 Berger
Poulter con Chappell
Seed Player W L H Points Finish
58   Ian Poulter 3 0 0 3 1
9   Tommy Fleetwood 2 1 0 2 2
33   Kevin Chappell 1 2 0 1 3
26   Daniel Berger 0 3 0 0 4
  • Chappell conceded his match with Poulter after 9 holes
    (Poulter 3 up) and withdrew from the tournament.
Group 10
Round Winner Score Loser
1 Casey 1 up Henley
Stanley 1 up Fitzpatrick
2 Casey 3 & 2 Stanley
Henley 2 & 1 Fitzpatrick
3 Fitzpatrick 3 & 2 Casey
Stanley 1 up Henley
Seed Player W L H Points Finish
45   Kyle Stanley 2 1 0 2 1
10   Paul Casey 2 1 0 2 2
51   Russell Henley 1 2 0 1 T3
31   Matt Fitzpatrick 1 2 0 1 T3
  • Stanley advanced in a sudden-death playoff vs Casey
    winning with birdie on the 2nd hole.
Group 11
Round Winner Score Loser
1 Suri 3 & 2 Leishman
Watson 5 & 3 Grace
2 Watson 3 & 2 Leishman
Grace 2 & 1 Suri
3 Leishman vs Grace – halved
Watson vs Suri – halved
Seed Player W L H Points Finish
35   Bubba Watson 2 0 1 2.5 1
23   Branden Grace 1 1 1 1.5 T2
64   Julian Suri 1 1 1 1.5 T2
11   Marc Leishman 0 2 1 0.5 4
Group 12
Round Winner Score Loser
1 Hatton 3 & 2 Lévy
Steele 1 up Hoffman
2 Hatton 3 & 2 Steele
Lévy 1 up Hoffman
3 Hoffman 3 & 2 Hatton
Steele 3 & 1 Lévy
Seed Player W L H Points Finish
12   Tyrrell Hatton 2 1 0 2 1
36   Brendan Steele 2 1 0 2 2
55   Alexander Lévy 1 2 0 1 T3
22   Charley Hoffman 1 2 0 1 T3
  • Hatton advanced in sudden-death playoff over Steele – 1 hole
Group 13
Round Winner Score Loser
1 Norén 4 & 2 Na
Finau 2 & 1 Pieters
2 Norén 5 & 4 Pieters
Finau 3 & 2 Na
3 Norén 1 up Finau
Pieters vs Na – halved
Seed Player W L H Points Finish
13   Alex Norén 3 0 0 3 1
29   Tony Finau 2 1 0 2 2
39   Thomas Pieters 0 2 1 0.5 T3
61   Kevin Na 0 2 1 0.5 T3
Group 14
Round Winner Score Loser
1 Howell III 3 & 2 Mickelson
Cabrera-Bello 2 & 1 Kodaira
2 Mickelson 1 up Kodaira
Howell III 3 & 1 Cabrera-Bello
3 Mickelson 1 up Cabrera-Bello
Howell III 2 & 1 Kodaira
Seed Player W L H Points Finish
59   Charles Howell III 3 0 0 3 1
14   Phil Mickelson 2 1 0 2 2
17   Rafa Cabrera-Bello 1 2 0 1 3
40   Satoshi Kodaira 0 3 0 0 4
Group 15
Round Winner Score Loser
1 Perez vs Kim – halved
Woodland vs Simpson – halved
2 Simpson 2 & 1 Perez
Kim 5 & 3 Woodland
3 Woodland 1 up Perez
Kim 2 up Simpson
Seed Player W L H Points Finish
50   Kim Si-woo 2 0 1 2.5 1
24   Gary Woodland 1 1 1 1.5 T2
37   Webb Simpson 1 1 1 1.5 T2
15   Pat Perez 0 2 1 0.5 4
Group 16
Round Winner Score Loser
1 Kuchar vs Z. Johnson – halved
Ikeda 2 & 1 Fisher
2 Kuchar 1 up Ikeda
Fisher 2 up Z. Johnson
3 Kuchar 6 & 4 Fisher
Ikeda vs Z. Johnson – halved
Seed Player W L H Points Finish
16   Matt Kuchar 2 0 1 2.5 1
47   Yuta Ikeda 1 1 1 1.5 2
27   Ross Fisher 1 2 0 1 T3
54   Zach Johnson 0 1 2 1 T3

Final 16 bracket

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First round
March 24 – morning
Quarter-finals
March 24 – afternoon
Semi-finals
March 25 – morning
Final
March 25 – afternoon
            
32   Kevin Kisner 1 up
16   Matt Kuchar
32   Kevin Kisner 8&6
58   Ian Poulter
25   Louis Oosthuizen
58   Ian Poulter 2&1
32   Kevin Kisner 19 h
13   Alex Norén
19   Patrick Reed
13   Alex Norén 5&3
13   Alex Norén 4&2
46   Cameron Smith
46   Cameron Smith 2&1
12   Tyrrell Hatton
32   Kevin Kisner
35   Bubba Watson 7&6
2   Justin Thomas 6&5
50   Kim Si-woo
2   Justin Thomas 2&1
45   Kyle Stanley
7   Sergio García
45   Kyle Stanley 3&1
2   Justin Thomas
35   Bubba Watson 3&2
28   Kiradech Aphibarnrat 1 up Third place
59   Charles Howell III
28   Kiradech Aphibarnrat 13   Alex Norén 5&3
35   Bubba Watson 5&3 2   Justin Thomas
18   Brian Harman
35   Bubba Watson 2&1

Prize money breakdown

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Place Description US ($)
1 Champion 1,700,000
2 Runner-up 1,072,000
3 Third place 695,000
4 Fourth place 559,000
T5 Losing quarter-finalists x 4 306,000
T9 Losing round of 16 x 8 163,000
T17 Those with 2 points in pool play x 12 97,917
T29 Those with 1.5 points in pool play x 7 77,429
T36 Those with 1 point in pool play x 16 65,500
T52 Those with 0.5 points in pool play x 7 54,214
T59 Those with 0 points in pool play x 6 50,250
Total 10,000,000

References

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  1. ^ "Week 10 – 2018" (PDF). Official World Golf Ranking. March 11, 2018.
  2. ^ Hoggard, Rex (March 9, 2018). "Rose skipping Match Play: Not a good Masters prep". Golf Channel. Retrieved March 13, 2018.
  3. ^ Everill, Ben (January 19, 2018). "Koepka sidelined for 10 weeks, hoping to play Masters". PGA Tour. Retrieved March 12, 2018.
  4. ^ Gray, Will (March 7, 2018). "Stenson cites pool format for skipping WGC-Match Play". Golf Channel. Retrieved March 12, 2018.
  5. ^ a b c "Format Overview and Glossary". PGA Tour. February 11, 2016. Archived from the original on February 28, 2016. Retrieved September 20, 2017.
  6. ^ "Past Results – World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play". Retrieved March 30, 2021.
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