Kirk denies demons and Cole, who earns consolation prize

Chris Kirk, putter in hand, is congratulated by runner-up Eric Cole after Kirk earns victory at the Honda Classic. Photo: Douglas P. DeFelice, Getty Images

There is no denying the truth in the old adage that everyone’s journey is different.

Or, to put it in the parlance of the late Arnold Palmer, whose name is on the PGA Tour event at his beloved Bay Hill Club in Orlando, Florida, this week, swing your own swing.

The notion was brought into sharp focus last weekend as Chris Kirk, a 37-year-old recovering alcoholic, overcame a potentially costly mistake on the 72nd hole to win the Honda Classic, beating 34-year-old tour rookie Eric Cole, who looked like he has spent dozens of Sunday afternoons in the final pairing of a PGA Tour event though he had never been there.

What made the final round of the star-starved Honda Classic compelling wasn’t so much the golf being played as the men who were playing it.

There was Kirk, with his laconic golf swing and public acknowledgement of the personal challenges he faces, dueling Cole...