Feb. 9, 2009 -- Turning on the Buick Invitational at gorgeous Torrey Pines in La Jolla, California, I was reminded of how any golf tournament played at this facility tends to become the Tiger Woods Show. Unfortunately for all of us, Tiger is still out recuperating, but we were treated to quite a show nonetheless.

As the leader board was flashed on the screen, there were many recognizable names like Rollins, Villegas, Watney, Donald and Glover. While all of these gentlemen have won on the PGA Tour before, none of them have a long history of winning tournaments. In some ways, that seemed to contribute to the suspense and excitement over the final few holes.

Nick Watney never led until his final putt dropped to give him the championship. (Photo: Getty Images)

Nick Watney, who won the 2007 Zurich Classic, began the final round five shots behind the third round leader John Rollins. Even more, as conditions became tougher and more severe, the odds of making a charge up the leaderboard seemed remote. But this was obviously not Watney's mindset as he teed it up on Sunday.

Ironically, Nick Faldo, the announcer for the telecast, mentioned early in the telecast that after the tournament, Nick would be looking back and saying to himself that he left many shots out on the greens this week if he did not win. But Watney was not going to dwell on what had happened in the past, he was too focused on what would be happening in the remaining few holes of Sunday.

Thus, despite what opportunities were and were not capitalized on during the week, Watney always felt like his next drive would find a fairway or his next putt would fall. His confidence never seemed to waiver on the tees or greens.

Watney's determination really came through on the back nine on Sunday. His ability to will the ball into the hole was masterful. His focus showed on a critical six-foot putt on no. 13 after watching the leader, John Rollins, make eagle. He followed that up with a 38-foot putt from off the fringe on no. 16. Finally, Nick made a difficult two-putt birdie on the 18th hole to win the tournament. And consider how Watney played those difficult Torrey Pine greens -- playing both courses -- and managed to get through the entire week without three-putting one green!

Nick spent six weeks with his coach this winter working on his putting and ball striking and it obviously shows. Showing great confidence in his Driving and Putting put him on top this week. He worked hard and received some great feedback for all of his hard work. I think that is something that everyone should strive to achieve.

Never dwell on shots that didn't end up like you might want, know that your next shot is one you can execute. Never lose your CONFIDENCE!

The next time you play golf, how many times do you think back to the negative? If it's one time, it's one time too many. Recall the good shots that you've hit, the time that you've spent practicing, and KNOW that you have the skills to pull off whatever shot you need to come through in the clutch. The most important shot in golf is the next one you're about to hit, never waiver in your belief that you can execute it to perfection.

Nick Watney knew that good drives would put him in position for good approach shots and then a chance to make some clutch putts. And he did all of that when needed and came away with a victory. It's a great experience for the young Californian and a great Lesson to be Learned for you. Good luck!

Craig Renshaw is a PGA Professional and Director of Instruction at Paradise Valley Country Club in Paradise Valley, AZ. He can be reached at golfprocraig@aol.com