Berger captures St. Jude
Young player says don’t forget about him
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The first few shots of Daniel Berger’s final round didn’t give much clue that his second straight victory at the St. Jude Classic was only a few hours away.
He hit his drive on No. 1 into the rough, sent his next shot into the rough far past the hole, and his third shot was a chip that didn’t even make it to the green. What was left was an awkward 25-foot chip to save par. He drilled it. And from that point on, Berger put together a stellar day on a firm, fast, challenging course at TPC Southwind, shooting a 4-under 66 to erase a three-shot deficit and beat South African Charl Schwartzel and South Korean Whee Kim by one stroke.
Now he just might be one of the young players to watch going into the U.S. Open next week at Erin Hills in Wisconsin.
“We hear a lot about the young guns and about the Justin Thomases and Jordan Spieths, but I feel like I kind of get forgotten a little bit,” Berger said. “I’m pretty good, so I’m just going to try and keep doing my thing and see if I can’t get a few more.”
Berger is the fourth back-to-back winner at St. Jude and the first since David Toms did it in 2003 and ’04. He played a bogey-free round on Sunday, usually avoiding trouble after the first hole. His 17-foot birdie putt on No. 15 put him ahead for good, and he finished at 10-under 270.
“I played really great through the first couple days but I didn’t make as many putts,” Berger said. “Then the last couple days they just started to fall, and that was the big difference.”
Schwartzel shot a 66 and Kim shot a 67 to finish in second. Amateur Braden Thornberry and Billy Horschel were among five players two shots back.
LPGA: In Cambridge, Ontario, Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand won the Manulife LPGA Classic on Sunday with a birdie on the first playoff hole to beat American Lexi Thompson and South Korea’s In Gee Chun.
Jutanugarn’s drive found the long grass on the side of the par-4 No. 18, but she recovered with an approach shot that left her pin-high. She calmly made a 25-footer for the victory.
Jutanugarn finished with a 3-under 69 in the final round and was tied with Thompson (72) and Chun (70) at 17-under 271.
CHAMPIONS: In Des Moines, Iowa, Brandt Jobe won the PGA Tour Champions event Sunday by one shot, finishing at 14-under 202 for his first victory in 19 years. Jobe shot a 69 in the final round to snap a winless drought that had stretched back to 1998, when he took first in a tournament in Japan.