Three-stroke swing on 18 gives Schauffele a Travelers title
CROMWELL – Xander Schauffele celebrated his a person-year marriage anniversary Sunday with a spectacular victory in the Travelers Championship.
The Olympic champion received with a three-stroke swing on the closing hole, hitting to 3 toes for birdie immediately after rookie Sahith Theegala took two pictures to get out of a bunker and produced a double bogey in the group forward.
A stroke in entrance moving into the day, Schauffele concluded with a 2-beneath 68 at TPC River Highlands to defeat Theegala and J.T. Poston by two strokes. Schauffele experienced a 19-under 261 whole.
“My mind was telling me to hit a great push and then use your sand wedge or lob wedge in there and make birdie,” Schauffele reported. “To sit there and look at what transpired was a bit of a shock, definitely. I actually experienced to attempt and focus on the undertaking at hand.”
Theegala shot a 67, and Poston had a 64.
Schauffele received for the sixth time on the PGA Tour and the 2nd this season following teaming with Patrick Cantlay to gain the Zurich Classic of New Orleans in April. It was his initially ever gain immediately after owning a 54-hole direct.
Theegala was lurking near the best of the leaderboard all working day and grabbed a share of the direct on 15, driving the inexperienced on the par-4 hole and producing a 4-foot birdie putt. He overtook Schauffele with an 11-footer for birdie on 17, pumping his fist.
But the former Pepperdine star experienced a bogey-no cost round heading until his tee shot on 18 remaining and into the front of a fairway bunker. He wanted two tries to get out of the sand.
“Somehow my body just, I just straight bladed it,” he reported. “I experienced space there. I really do not know how it appeared, but I experienced room there. Just did not consider I would enable myself blade it. But I guess the moment was – and then from there it’s, like, bought to try out and make 5 now.”
His 12-foot bogey putt lipped out, and he fell to his knees in agony.
“I did anything I considered I experienced to do and it just transpired to be anything negative culminated on one hole,” he explained. “I did so substantially very good.”
In February in the Phoenix Open up, Theegala – following top after just about every of the first a few days – drove into the h2o on 17 for a bogey and completed a shot out of a playoff that Scottie Scheffler received over Cantlay.
Theegala was trying to turn out to be just the second rookie to win this period, becoming a member of Chad Ramey, who won in the Dominican Republic. The 2020 Tourists was his initially specialist start, but he skipped the lower.
Schauffele was dependable Sunday with two birdies and a bogey on the front right before mirroring that rating on the again.
He will take property just beneath $1.5 million, not a bad present for a celebration he options with his wife, Maya.
“It’s truly pleased anniversary,” he said. “It’s my a person-year anniversary with my wife. So I’m heading to go check out and get residence and see my spouse.”
Newbie Michael Thorbjornsen, from nearby Wellesley, Massachusetts, was fourth at 15 below following a 66.
The Stanford star was looking to become the 1st newbie to earn on the tour given that Phil Mickelson it in 1991. He shot a 31 on the entrance 9, including an eagle on No. 6 soon after putting a 261-yard approach a foot from the gap. He concluded with a 66.
“I felt genuinely great and snug out there, then around the stop had a couple of hiccups, which transpires often,” explained Thorbjornsen, who additional that he designs to return to college in the fall. “I really do not consider I was way too nervous, just a pair of miss-executions.”
The past best end by an beginner at the Connecticut match arrived in 1966, when Tim Grant finished tied for sixth place at the close by Wethersfield Country Club in what was then identified as the Insurance coverage Town Open up.
Poston, who was the co-leader just after taking pictures a initially-spherical 62, begun the working day tied for seventh spot, 9 strokes back again. He place up a bogey-free 64, ending with his sixth birdie of the day.
“I putted effectively, drove it perfectly, strike my irons excellent,” he mentioned
Cantlay commenced the day just a stroke powering his excellent buddy Schauffele. But very last year’s FedEx Cup champion, who had a merged four bogeys in the to start with three rounds, shot five of them on the front nine on Sunday.
He completed with a 76 and in a tie for 13th at 10 under.
Luke Record, who shot a 65 on Sunday to end at 9-below had the shot of the day, opening his round with 119-garden technique on No. 1 that took a brief bounce into the gap for an eagle.
Rory McIlroy, who shot an opening-round 62, also finished at 9 underneath with a 67 on Sunday. This was his fourth straight match for the No. 2-rated participant in the globe, who mentioned he won’t enjoy again prior to the Open up Championship at St. Andrews subsequent month.
Morgan Hoffmann, who is fighting facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy, completed at 2 over in his 3rd and ultimate tournament of the year on a 3-party healthcare exemption. The 32-yr-old, who took several a long time off from the Tour to focus on his overall health, shot a 71 Sunday, ending his morning with a birdie immediately after hitting his method at 18 less than 2-toes from the pin.
Hoffman, a New Jersey indigenous now living in Costa Rica, stated he’s hoping to get a couple of sponsor’s exemptions this summer months and is cherishing the golfing when making an attempt to encourage other people by remaining healthier.
“I’m just heading to hold carrying out what I’m undertaking, cleansing month-to-month, eating nourishing meals and doing the job out difficult and preserve attaining muscle mass and in the meantime I’m creating a wellness center (in Costa Rica) to assist other persons do the very same,” he explained.
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