Bateman leaps into world's top 150
Brian Bateman's win at the Buick Open has improved his official world golf ranking spot from 408 to 138th position.
Brian Bateman's win at the Buick Open has improved his official world golf ranking spot from 408 to 138th position.
34-year-old Brian Bateman captured his first PGA Tour title Sunday at the Buick Open by nailing a 12 ft. birdie putt to avoid a four-man playoff. "It feels great. I didn’t really have any expectations today," said Bateman after his round with David Feherty of CBS. Jason Gore, Justin Leonard, and Woody Austin finished in a tie for second place. Gore, a previous winner on tour, had his first top-10 performance of the year. He said in his press conference about Bateman: "He’s a great champion. He’s been a great player for a long, long time. It’s just good to see that he’s realized how great he is and hopefully this takes him to another great level." Bateman was emotional at the end of his interview with Steve Sands of The Golf Channel. "I kept telling myself you can do this, you have to believe that it’s your time," said Bateman.
