Daytona Beach native makes special gesture in honor of his victory at Arnold Palmer Invitational Presented by MasterCard
ORLANDO, Fla. (March 3, 2015) - Her name is Quinn Palmer Every, and she was born on Nov. 24 to Matt and Danielle Every. She is named in honor of Matt's first PGA TOUR victory, of course, the Arnold Palmer Invitational Presented by MasterCard and the man who hosts it, the legendary Arnold Palmer.
Every, who grew up in Daytona Beach, Fla., about an hour from Palmer's Bay Hill Club & Lodge, as a kid used to attend the tournament as a spectator, so you could imagine how special it was for him to earn his breakthrough victory in front of Palmer on the Championship Course. And he did it in a special way, shooting a closing 2-under 70 to rally past reigning Masters champion Adam Scott.
Every, who finished at 13-under 275, completed a remarkable rally in beating Keegan Bradley by one stroke. Every was nine shots behind Scott going into the weekend, and he was still four behind the Australian going into the final round. But Scott, who set the tournament's 36-hole scoring record by opening 62-28-130, let a seven-stroke lead after two rounds evaporate with a series of mishits and missed putts. He closed with 76 to finish third at 277, while Bradley's 72 allowed him to sneak into solo second place.
"It's still amazing to me that I won and that I won at Bay Hill," said Every, 31, who broke through in his 93rd career PGA TOUR start. "A lot of things have to happen right for you to win a tournament. You have to play well, obviously, but you have to have a little bit of luck, some good breaks. I don't think I really understood that, but I do now. So that's just another reason the win is special. Winning is hard."
Indeed, it is. Every, the first breakthrough TOUR winner at Bay Hill since Paul Goydos in 1996, has played some fine golf in the past, including tournaments where he has shot all four rounds in the 60s, but he was never before able to put all the elements together that would add up to a victory. He didn't necessarily strike the ball his best at Bay Hill, particularly off the tee, but he hit plenty of greens in regulation (52 of 72 for 72.2 percent) and he ranked third in the field in strokes gained-putting. "Sometimes," he says, "I still can't believe I did it."
Every says his goal for the 2015 season is to be a more ball-striker, and he has been consulting with swing coach Sean Foley in making slight tweaks to his swing. He hopes that will translate to more chances to win, but he has struggled in the early part of 2015 to find a rhythm.
"Wins will come," he says. "But if I win once or four times or not at all, the important thing is to improve."
In the meantime, he has his first chance to defend a title coming up with the 37th edition of the Arnold Palmer Invitational Presented by MasterCard March 16-22. And that will merely be a continuation of the yearlong celebration he and his family have enjoyed, one that included the birth of their daughter. Every and his wife, Danielle, who already have a son, Liam, didn't hesitate in their decision to somehow honor The King when their second child arrived.
"Yeah, it's something that we really wanted to do," Every said proudly. "Pretty cool, huh?"
For tickets to the 2015 Arnold Palmer Invitational Presented by MasterCard, go to www.arnoldpalmerinvitational.com, visit participating Central Florida Publix stores or call the tournament ticket office at 407-876-7774. Tournament proceeds benefit Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children and Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women & Babies.