By Rahul Banerji
Two eagles and four birdies in his last five holes gave Xander Schauffele the winning edge, enough to beat the hard-chasing Gary Woodland Sentry Tournament of Champions in Hawaii on Sunday.
The young Californian went 11-under par 62 in his closing round but still had to wait for Woodland to miss a birdie putt on his 18th hole to don the tradition victor’s lei and get his hands on the trophy.
It was his second win of the season and lifted Schauffele to sixth in the official golf world rankings.
“This is the stuff you dream about,” Schauffele was quoted as saying later. “But to actually pull it off, it feels awesome. I could see myself doing it, but it’s hard to believe just sitting here and talking about it.
“It was a crazy day. I knew it was going to be a birdie fest at the end. We kept our head down and made a run for it.”
‘This will sting’
Woodland had a chance to force a playoff, but his birdie putt on that par 5 ran just wide. “This one will sting,” he said later. “I don’t think it will ever be easy because I still believe I was playing well enough to shoot 66 today.
“I had killed the par 5s all week this week, which is what you’ve got to do out here. So I knew what he was doing, and the competitor in me knew I needed to do one better. And unfortunately, I didn’t get it done.”
Irishman Rory McIlroy did make a run too, but could not sustain the momentum and finished in a tie for fourth with defending champion Dustin Johnson and Australian Marc Leishman.
PGA Tour hits charity high
Meanwhile, the PGA Tour and its tournaments generated a record $190 million for more than 3,000 charitable causes in 2018, announced during the Sentry Tournament of Champions, bringing its all-time total to $2.84 billion from all sources, a statement from the organisation said on Monday.
“Through the world of golf, the PGA Tour and its tournaments, backed by its network of volunteers, drive positive impact at unprecedented levels to support and improve local communities,” said Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan.
“By supporting a PGA Tour event, you make an impact on countless philanthropic organisations in your community. As remarkable as our nearly $3 billion in donations is, what really matters are the remarkable stories like Sets’ that every tournament has.
“It’s a credit to our partners – host organisations, title sponsors, volunteers, the fans in the communities in which we play, as well as our players, who are relentlessly supportive of the impact the Tour makes on so many lives.”
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