Seven years on and he still thinks about his ‘what if?’ moment.
What if, at the 17th, he hadn’t three putted from three feet for the only time in his professional career?
What if his 12-foot putt on the last hadn’t defied all the laws of nature and stayed above ground?
Chances are, if fate and fortune had combined more favourably during that fateful last half-hour at the 2006 Arnold Palmer Invitational, Englishman Greg Owen would be making the 15-minute drive from his Orlando residence this week not only as a former champion but a multi-tournament winner.
Instead, the 41-year-old from Nottinghamshire is still awaiting his first victory in the land he now calls home.
A living drama gets written every Sunday on the PGA Tour, whereby a winner gets feted, a loser gets consoled and the whole circus moves on. But some players don’t move on, or not without some lasting effect.
Even now, Owen spends most weeks trying to conjure up the feelings he had for 70 holes of that event and block out what happened on the last two.
A brief recap: he stood over a three-foot putt on the 17th at Bay Hill for a two-shot lead. He missed it, missed the one back and then saw his par putt at the last horseshoe horribly out to lose by one.
‘For so long it was the perfect Sunday and I often try to remember why I felt so comfortable and replicate it,’ he said.
Rage: Owen reacts to a poor drive on the 16th hole during the fourth round of the 2006 Bay Hill InvitationalBlow: Owen missed a putt on the 18th that would have sent the match into a play-off
‘This year, I have been doing such good work on the range but I get out on the course and make these mistakes you can’t make if you want to do well.
‘It’s a mental issue and so you think to yourself, “How do I get back into that zone, like that week in 2006?”
‘The old axiom is the harder you work the more rewards you get but it isn’t always the case.’
In the grand scheme of things, Owen isn’t complaining. Success on the PGA Tour is measured in different ways and by the vast majority it would be hard to think of him as a failure.
Few people gave him a prayer when he left Europe in 2005 for the PGA Tour Qualifying School but here he is, still on tour with almost $6million earned in official money alone.
On the morning we spoke, his two daughters had just dived into the swimming pool at their handsome home.
‘There’s no English in their accents and that’s fine, we just love it out here,’ said Owen. ‘There’s no getting away from the fact it is a wonderful opportunity and I’ve enjoyed every minute.’
Well, nearly every minute.
Later this year, in a move tinged with irony, Owen will become a Bay Hill Member. How nice if he came up with something this week that means every time he steps on the 17th green, he won’t be thinking: ‘What if?
This time last year we were crowing about three UK victories in a row in Florida. This season, the 12 events held so far on the PGA Tour have been won by 12 different Americans.
I guess, if we were the type, we would be bemoaning what’s happened to the UK’s finest and asking, “Are they all resting on their riches?”
But we all know what this game is like, that people actually don’t win all that often.
Stupid as it sounds, you could put forward a valid argument that this barren run means it is more likely one of them will end the 17-year drought and win the Masters, no less.
First victory on tour: USA's Michael Thompson holds the Honda Classic trophy aloft
Caddieshack to Augusta in 10 years
Ten years ago, Kevin Streelman was working as a caddie at an upmarket country club in Scottsdale, Arizona, casting envious eyes at the likes of Phil Mickelson, Geoff Ogilvy and Paul Casey, who were members of the club.
From there he went on to put 400,000 miles on the clock of his battered old car as he worked hard to make a living on some of the numerous mini-tours that are dotted around America. True, the 34-year-old from Winfield, Illinois (below), wasn’t the most glamorous name that could have adorned the trophy at the Tampa Bay Championship last week.
Moving up: Ten years ago Kevin Streelman was a caddieNot with defending champion Luke Donald — the world No 3 — finishing fourth and Sergio Garcia seventh.
But there really wasn’t anyone for whom winning would have meant more, nor someone more deserving of the precious perk that came with it: an invitation to next month’s Masters.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
‘Ten years ago I was going into surgery to put a rod and five screws into my back. I’m really not supposed to be here.’
Not only is American Stacy Lewis ‘here’, on Sunday the 28-year-old ended Yani Tseng’s two-year run at the top of the women’s world rankings and celebrated by donating $50,000 to the LPGA’s girls golf programme. Long may she prosper.
Here: Stacy Lewis came back to depose Yani Tseng at the top of the world rankingsMore... Tiger's latest birdie! Woods and US ski star Vonn go public with blossoming romance Donald falls short but steely Streelman seals Masters spot with Tampa Bay triumph South African Aiken holds his nerve to secure Avantha Masters title in India VIDEO: Crane and Cauley play TPC Sawgrass... at night with glowsticks and glowballs!
