Sepp Straka’s bid for a sub-60 final round met a watery grave at the 72nd hole on Sunday but he hung on to win the John Deere Classic.
Despite closing with a double-bogey, the 30-year-old Austrian fired a PGA Tour career-low nine-under-par 62 in the final round to finish 72 holes on 21-under 263 at TPC Deere Run in Silvis, Illinois.
That was good enough for a two-stroke victory over Americans Brendon Todd and Alex Smalley, who couldn’t overtake Straka down the last holes.
South Africa’s Garrick Higgo ended on 13-under 271 (T21) after a final-round 69, with MJ Daffue a further three shots behind.
“It was pretty crazy. I’m just pumped about it. It feels awesome,” Straka said about his second career PGA Tour title. “The putter was hot and I was able to take advantage of it with some good iron play.”
Straka was 11 under on the day before finding water at 18 and reaching the clubhouse only two strokes ahead of Todd, who had five holes remaining as he tried to end a four-year win drought.
Todd and Smalley each birdied 14 to pull within one but Todd missed a six-foot birdie putt at 15 and made a three-putt bogey at the par-three 16th to fall two adrift again.
Both closed with back-to-back pars to hand Straka hand the triumph.
“The 59 was nowhere in my head really,” Straka said of his closing holes. “I knew I had a chance but in that situation the only thing that really matters is trying to win the golf tournament.”
That seemed in doubt after he found the water on his approach at 18.
“It was not a good shot, I pulled it,” Straka said. “The wind was off to the right but I was just trying to go to the middle of the green, let it feed down to the left toward the hole. I pulled it early and then the wind dragged it over to the water.
“It was unfortunate but that was the first bad shot I hit today so I’ll give myself a little bit of slack there. I hit a good putt and it broke a little more than I thought it would.”
Straka won his only prior PGA Tour title at last year’s Honda Classic but lost two other 2022 events in playoffs.
Straka’s impressive round began with a birdie putt from just outside five feet at the first hole, followed by a 20-foot eagle putt at the par-five 2nd.
“The ball just stopped short of the bunker where I could have a stance and hit a really nice iron shot in there and made the putt,” Straka said of his eagle.
After a birdie putt at the 4th from just outside eight feet, Straka landed his approach barely two feet from the hole and birdied the par-four 6th, then sank a 29-foot birdie putt at the par-three 7th.
Straka closed the front nine with a 40-foot birdie putt for a seven-under 28 start, his lowest nine-hole score.
He reeled off four birdies in a row with a seven-foot birdie putt at 11, another from just inside 14 feet at the par-three 12th, a nine-foot birdie putt at 13 and another from half that distance at 14.
Straka was just off the left edge of the hole on a 41-foot birdie putt at 15 and saved par from a greenside bunker at the par-five 17th before the double-bogey finish.
© Agence France-Presse
