Scottie Scheffler played the type of golf that won a traditional U.S. Open. Sunday’s Arnold Palmer Invitational was exactly that.
Scheffler saved two pars in a final round that was characterized by some of the most difficult scoring conditions in forty years. He then made key putts to save a pair of unlikely pars. Scheffler followed this with a pair lag putts. Scheffler won with an even-par 72, a one-shot win.
Scheffler has now won two PGA Tour titles within the last month after he took home his first win at the Phoenix Open. This one was quite loud. This was stressful for anyone who had a chance.
The average scoring score was 75.48, which is a fraction lower that it was last year. The tournament was won by 10 players who finished below par.
With a 30-foot birdie on the final hole, Billy Horschel was the last man to have a shot at Scheffler. Horschel was tied for second with Tyrrell Hatton (69), and Viktor Hovland (74)
Hovland was tied for first until Hovland caught a plugged lie on the front bunker of the 17th. He then had to two-putt 50 feet from the fringe for bogey. Scheffler was paired with Hovland, and Scheffler needed a birdie to catch him. The Norwegian missed the hole from 18 feet.
LPGA TOUR
SINGAPORE (AP), Jin Young Ko lived up her title of No. The No. 1 player in women’s golf, Jin Young Ko started her LPGA Tour season by winning the HSBC Women’s World Championship by two shots. This was her sixth win in 10 starts.
Ko birdied the last hole to score a 6-under-66, beating In Gee Chun (69), and Minjee Lee (63)
South Korean star, Kim Hyun-so, set a new LPGA Tour record by playing her 15th consecutive round of 60s in the 60s. She also played her 30th subpar round.
Ko, who won in November the CME Group Tour Championship to close out last year’s season, was home for three months prior to intensive practice sessions in Palm Springs. Ko finished 17-under 271 at Sentosa Golf Club’s Tanjong course.
Jeongeun Lee6 tied for fourth with Ko, until she made a double-bogey on hole number 69. Attaya Thitikul from Thailand tied her for fourth, with a 67.
PGA TOUR
RIO GRANDE (Puerto Rico) — Ryan Brehm needed to win or finish alone second in order to maintain PGA Tour status. He won the Puerto Rico Open, his first tour title.
Chelsey, his wife, was his caddie. The 35-year old Brehm birdied five holes at Grand Reserve in windy and rainy conditions and defeated Max McGreevy six strokes to the death.
Brehm, who was three strokes ahead at the start of the day, shot a 5-under-67 to finish at 20 under 268 in the make or break start on a minor medical extension. After having to withdraw from last year’s Zuruch Classic due to COVID-19, he was granted the one-tournament extended.
Brehm was able to receive a two year exemption and a spot at the PGA Championship. He will not be exempt from the Masters. In his 68th tour start, the former Michigan State player of 6’4″ won. He is ranked 773rd worldwide.
Brehm got off to a fast start with a birdie at the par-4 1st and another at the par-5 5th. He scored three consecutive birdies on the par-4 9th, 10th, and par-3 11th. He then parred the last seven.
The Brehms were the first husband-wife caddie pair to win the Wyndham Championship since Justine Reed and Patrick Reed.
McGreevy finished with a score of 69.
PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS
NEWPORT BEACH (Calif.) — Retief Goosen shot for eagle on the par-4 first hole. He then birdied the second two holes and cruised to an eight-under 63.
Goosen was a stroke behind South African star Ernie Els when he entered the round. He pulled away quickly at Newport Beach Country Club, in calmer but breezy conditions than Saturday’s players.
Goosen hit his first drive into the left bunker and Goosen’s long blast hit flagstick. The cup was inverted without any green.
Goosen finished at 15-under 198. The two-time U.S. Open Champion, Goosen, was back from offseason shoulder surgery and won the 50-and over tour for the second consecutive time. He was also the 2019 Senior Players winner.
Goosen continued the 4-under burst by making a birdie at the par-4 sixth. He birdied the Par-3 10th. After rebounding from a bogey at the 11th, Goosen added birdies at the 12th and 15h. Finally, he finished his round with a 12-foot birdie putt at the 18th.
K.J. Choi came in second place after a 66.
EUROPEAN TOUR
NAIROBI (AP) — Ashun of China, Ashun Wu, closed the final round with a 6-under 65. He turned a four shot deficit into a victory by four shots in the Magical Kenya Open on European Tour.
Wu has won 66 events around the world since he took home the KLM Open 2018. He won the European Tour for the fourth consecutive time.
Ewen Ferguson, Scotland, lost his 54-hole lead when he closed with a 76. Wu was able to take advantage of this opportunity and won with a fantastic short game.
Wu birdied the last two holes to finish at 16 under 268
Thriston Lawrence from South Africa tried to keep close with a 31 on his front nine. But he couldn’t make another birdie after hole 10. Lawrence finished with a 66, and shared second place with Hurly Lang of Germany (66), and Aaron Cockerill from Canada (67).
Ferguson finished eighth, seven shots behind.
OTHER TOURS
Kum-Kang Park won Florida’s Natural Charity Classic, the Epson Tour’s season opener. The 20-year old South Korean player finished at 9-under207 at Country Club of Winter Haven with a score of 2-under 70. She was also the winner of last year’s Murphy USA El Dorado Shootout. Two strokes behind were Alana Uriell (67), and Frida Kinhult (71). …. Sihwan Kim won by two shots over Phachara Khongwatmai in the International Series -Thailand. This was Kim’s first professional win at 33 years old. He won the U.S. He was a Junior Amateur at Olympic Club in 2004, and played four years at Stanford. Oliver Hundeboll, Denmark, won the Mangaung Open in South Africa by two shots. This was his first Challenge Tour title. Tristen Strydom from South Africa shot 68 and finished second in the Sunshine Tour-sponsored event. Mao Saigo, who was seven times runner-up on the Japan LPGA last year, won her first title with a 5-under-67 finish in the Daikin Orchid Ladies Golf Tournament. This event is the first on the JLPGA season.
