Theegala gets 1st win on PGA Tour, Stricker gets 6th of the year on Champions
NAPA, Calif. (AP) — Sahith Theegala finally captured his first PGA Tour title on Sunday, building a big lead early and closing with a 4-under 68 in the Fortinet Championship to win by two shots over S.H. Kim.
With nearly three dozen family members and friends from Southern California cheering him on, Theegala started at Silverado with a two-shot lead and birdied three of the opening five holes. No one got close to him the rest of the way.
Justin Thomas, playing for the first time in six weeks, birdied the last hole for a 72 and finished alone in fifth. This was his only tuneup ahead of the Ryder Cup that starts Sept. 29 in Rome. Two-time defending champion Max Homa shot 69 and tied for seventh.
Theegala made a bogey on the final hole of the BMW Championship that kept him out of the Tour Championship, ending his season on a sour note. Even though he already is set for all the $20 million signature events next year, he wanted to play at Silverado because he loves the tournament and competition.
It paid off in a big way. The victory gets him into the Sentry Tournament of Champions and assures his spot in the Masters.
EUROPEAN TOUR
VIRGINIA WATER, England (AP) — Ryan Fox overcame a three-shot deficit and a triple bogey early in the final round Sunday with six birdies on the back nine — the last one from 6 feet on the 18th hole — for a 5-under 67 and a one-shot victory over Aaron Rai and Tyrrell Hatton in the BMW PGA Championship.
Ludvig Aberg, the Swedish rookie, never recovered from an atrocious start of his own. He took two double bogeys on the front nine with poor chips and missed putts. He missed five putts from inside 6 feet. He closed with a 76 and tied for 10th.
That turned the back nine at Wentworth into a free-for-all among four players chasing the flagship event on the European tour in the rain and a one-hour delay from lightning in the area.
Hatton opened with five birdies in seven holes and had the lead until he drove out-of-bounds on the 15th and did well to make bogey. A birdie on the 18th gave him a 66 and a momentary tie for the lead. Rai two-putted for birdie on the 18th for a 68 and joined Hatton.
That set the stage for Fox, who chose to lay up on the 18th and hit wedge to 6 feet.
Europe had five Ryder Cup players finish in the top seven in their final start before going to Marco Simone to face the Americans.
PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — Steve Stricker holed a 20-foot eagle putt to catch K.J. Choi and then picked up a pair of late birdies that sent him to a 4-under 66 to win the Sanford International for his sixth victory this year on the PGA Tour Champions.
Stricker earned $300,000, leaving him just short of $4 million for the year and setting a record for most money in a single season on the 50-and-older circuit.
He has not finished worse than eighth all year, and three of those six wins have come in majors on the senior circuit. He won the Sanford International for the third time.
Stricker started the final round with a one-shot lead but found himself trying to catch Choi, who got off to a fast start and closed with a 65. Stricker made eagle on No. 12 and then had birdies on the 15th and 16th to surge ahead toward the win.
KORN FERRY TOUR
COLLEGE GROVE, Tenn. (AP) — Grayson Murray birdied four of his last five holes Sunday to close with a 6-under 66 and win the Simmons Bank Open, securing his return to the PGA Tour next year.
Murray was locked in a tight battle on the back nine at The Grove when he pulled away for what turned out to be a three-shot victory. He rolled in a 15-foot birdie putt on the long par-4 17th hole to take a two-shot lead over Jamie Lovemark, and then birdied the par-5 18th.
Lovemark missed the 17th green from the fairway and failed to save par, falling three shots behind and all but clinching the victory for Murray. Lovemark closed with a 70 and tied for second with Mason Anderson (66) and Carter Jenkins (70).
Murray won for the second time this year on the Korn Ferry Tour. He moved to No. 6 in the standings, and the top 30 earn PGA Tour cards for 2024. Murray won the opposite-field Barbasol Championship in 2017 for his lone PGA Tour victory.
OTHER TOURS
Cydney Clanton birdied three of her last four holes and shot a 4-under 68 for a two-shot victory in the Guardian Championship on the Epson Tour. … Hideto Tanihara overcame a three-shot deficit by closing with a 5-under 67 for a one-shot victory in the ANA Open. Tanihara won for the 19th time on the Japan Golf Tour. Young-han Song (67) and Koshiro Maeda (66) were one shot back. … Marco Penge won his first Challenge Tour event when he shot a 2-under 70 for a four-shot victory over Lorenzo Scalise and Julian Suri in the Portugal Open. … Alexandra Forsterling of Germany shot a 5-under 66 and won the VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open by two shots over Madelene Stavnar of Norway on the Ladies European Tour. … Kyle Barker closed with a 6-under 65 and beat Pieter Moolman (72) in a playoff to win the Vodacom Origins of Golf-Western Cape on the Sunshine Tour. … Akie Iwai closed with a 2-under 70 for a one-shot victory over Sakura Koiwai in the Sumitomo Life Vitality Ladies Tokai Classic on the Japan LPGA.
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