Howell’s Loss Won’t Leave Lasting Scar

Charles Howell III played golf with a target on his back at Riviera Country Club on Sunday. Mike Weir played golf with the wind at his back.

Howell had led the Nissan Open by three shots to start his day. Weir had trailed by seven. Howell had played 18 holes thinking about nothing but winning. Weir played 17 holes thinking about anything but winning.

Yet after a two-hole, sudden-death playoff, Weir won his second tournament this season. Howell couldn’t believe, even an hour after the end, that he hadn’t won. But golf is often simpler played easy, played for the fun of it, as much as the PGA Tour is ever only fun.

Weir thought about shooting a low score. Howell thought about holding on.

By the time these two lean, stringy young men with power that comes from somewhere other than bulging muscles, engaged each other in the extra holes, Weir had already won.

Weir, the Canadian lefty, had been able to score a 66 without pressure and with few noticing.

“I wanted to shoot a good number,” Weir said, “and that’s all.” Starting 40 minutes ahead of the leaders, he had the second-lowest round of the day. That guy Tiger shot a 65. But we’re not talking about Tiger today. Tiger finished tied for fifth, starting the day way back too.

Howell thought about nothing but winning. From the first hole until the last. “Not once during the round did I think anything other than that I’d win,” Howell said.

He was the leader after three rounds of a golf tournament for the first time in his young career. You almost have to squint to see the 23-year-old Howell. He is that thin. But Howell is not without strength, both physical and mental. It’s just that being a front-runner in golf of all sports is most difficult.

Howell was PGA Tour rookie of the year two years ago. Howell got his first, and so far, only, tournament victory last year. Howell was certain he would get No. 2 Sunday. He didn’t. He hadn’t yet trained for this moment.

Howell didn’t win because from way back there, off the radar screen, followed by what was left of the gallery that wasn’t running after Tiger or crowding the ropes and squinting to see Howell, Weir was swinging freely and making birdies.

And then for an hour, Weir hung out and watched while Howell finished. It wasn’t that Howell totally fell apart or started hitting balls off the heads of the gallery or out of bounds. He just wasn’t making any long putts or placing his short irons square on the sticks. He was shooting a 73 and hanging on, looking at the scoreboard once and seeing a new name: WEIR, -9.

“I think,” said Nick Price, “he was a little nervous today. I could detect, perhaps, in some of his decision-making, he made a couple of bad calls.”

Price, 46 and winner of 18 tournaments, was speaking of Howell. Price trailed Howell by the three shots to start the day and ended up tied for third. Price owns the perspective and wisdom of nearly 26 years of playing professional golf. “Charles hit a lot of good shots,” Price said, “but he was obviously unsettled.”

Howell disagreed.

“I wasn’t nervous,” Howell said. “I thought I would be but I wasn’t. I slept fine.”

But when Weir and Howell walked together to the tee at the 18th hole, to play it again, to start a playoff, Weir smiled. Howell’s lips were closed tight, drawn together into something that brought to mind pain. Maybe it was only concentration but maybe it was also a little bit of a young man who didn’t quite know how he had gotten here.

“I honestly thought I’d win right until the end,” Howell repeated. And he also repeated, several times, how he felt about not winning. He used a phrase we can’t print in the newspaper. It is a phrase used too much by the kids but which was totally appropriate and described perfectly how Howell felt.

Because Howell felt that way, because he spit the words out, because he never thought about what losing would feel like until the end, that’s why Howell will be better the next time he is thethird-round leader.

And this is why too:

On the second playoff hole, No. 10, a 315-yard par four, Howell used his driver, went for it all. He ended up in the sand, a tricky place. After Weir had used a wedge to get within eight feet and it seemed the tournament was over, Howell one-upped Weir. Howell used the fringe, played a bit of bump and run and the ball rolled to a stop six feet from the pin. Weir made his birdie putt.

“I thought I’d make mine too,” Howell said. “I really did.”

But Howell didn’t. He pushed the six-footer. Howell won’t say it, he can’t say it, he shouldn’t say it. But those were nerves hitting that final putt.

Howell’s face hid his disappointment. He did all his interviews. He didn’t second-guess any shot, he didn’t express anger. He said he wasn’t tired. He said the next time he leads after three rounds, he won’t do anything different. “Except,” Howell said, “I won’t lose.”

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Diane Pucin can be reached at diane.pucin@latimes.com.