Now for Something Completely Different: The Champion, Martin Kaymer

Clearly being responsible for some of the divergence away from who actually won the PGA Championship, I feel compelled to offer some thoughts on Martin Kaymer's play yesterday.

First, though, a little backstory. I've been high on Martin Kaymer for a while now. The kid showed immediate promise four years ago when he made his European Tour debut. Routinely, I would pick him for fantasy golf (and announce it publicly), then get screwed somehow.

After back to back wins on the European Tour leading into the Open Championship last year, I said that I didn't think Kaymer was yet ready for the primetime lights of major championship golf. I happened to be right last year. Kaymer has had an amazing majors season in 2010 to prove his ready now.

Following a disappointing 54th place finish at the Masters, Kaymer snuck in some top ten finishes in the Opens - 8th at Pebble, 7th at the Old Course. Quietly, Kaymer had amassed as many top ten in majors in 2010 as Phil, Tiger, and Lee Westwood. Yes, Kaymer's profile was not nearly as high as the aforementioned stars, but his consistency should not have gone more or less unnoticed here in the States.

Again, he flew under the radar going into Kohler. I hardly even noticed until Saturday even though Kaymer had completed two rounds in a very capable 4-under par. His 68 on Friday was literally flawless - four birdies, the rest pars. Saturday was even better, shooting 67 to position him four back of Nick Watney.

While no one thought Watney was invincible, his three shot lead looked a whole lot more secure than it wound up being. Kaymer took advantage. Making just a single bogey in the final round, Kaymer positioned himself for much of the afternoon as the man to beat. The wheels loosened a little on the Mercedes when he bogeyed the fifteenth and mysteriously could not take advantage - like many in the final groups - of the accessible par 5 16th.

Kaymer seemed doomed when he short sided himself to the far right of the massive green at the last. That gutsy par putt - center cut, even - showed the mark of a true champion.

After everything unfolded with Dustin Johnson, Kaymer collected himself to face the clear crowd favorite in Bubba Watson. Kaymer answered Watson's routine birdie on the 361 yard 10th hole with an even more stirring birdie in his second crack at 17 that day.  

In some sense, Watson may have handed the championship to Kaymer by incorrectly predicted a flyer lie from the deep stuff on 18, but Kaymer still had to execute to win. A 190 yard downhill approach shot to a tight pin secured the win.

For the final three days of the tournament, Kaymer made just three bogeys - two in regulation and one to secure the playoff win. That kind of stretch is perhaps the most impressive play in a major this year, and certainly is on the level with how Phil Mickelson and Louis Oosthuizen surged to victory. The caliber of his play should not be overshadowed for all eternity by what happened to Dustin Johnson (happened to himself?) because what Martin Kaymer accomplished on Sunday is very likely to be just a starting point for bigger things.