Thomas snaps skid
Staked to a 6-shot lead,
Justin Thomas spent more time yesterday worrying about what could go wrong than ending 12 months without winning.
And right when it started to go wrong, Thomas delivered his biggest shots in the BMW Championship.
In a span of three holes around the turn at Medinah, his 6-shot lead shrunk to 2. Thomas answered with two clutch wedge shots, two big putts and sailed to a 4-under-par 68 to secure a 3-shot victory ahead of Patrick Cantlay, who gave him a battle to the end with a 65.
“Patrick played unbelievably, put a lot of heat on me,” Thomas said. “In the end, it could have been good for me. It kept me focused, kept my head down . ... I was really nervous going into today. I remembered that it’s really hard to win a golf tournament, and I’m glad that I was able to do so.”
The timing was ideal. His first victory since the World Golf Championship at Firestone last year moved him to the top of the FedEx Cup going into the Tour Championship, where he will start the tournament at 10-under with a 2-shot lead under the new scoring format as the final 30 players chase a $15 million prize.
“I can certainly say I never slept on a Wednesday lead,” Thomas said.
Cantlay, who made four straight birdies around the turn, secured the No. 2 position and will start at 8-under.
Brooks Koepka will be 7-under, a staggered start all the way down to even par for the final five players.
That includes Lucas Glover, who went bogey-double bogey until finishing with a 2-putt par from 40 feet for his first trip to the Tour Championship in 10 years.
It will not include Masters champion Tiger Woods, the defending champion.
Woods was a long shot going into the final round to crack the top 30, and he closed with a 72. East Lake was his first victory in five years, capping his return from four back surgeries, a special moment replaced some six months later by his Masters victory.
“It’s disappointing,” Woods said. “Last year culminated in a pretty special moment for me and would have been nice to go back.”
Hideki Matsuyama took the 36-hole lead with a 63 until falling back with a 73. He responded with another 63 to finish alone in third, making him one of three players who moved into the top 30 to reach East Lake. The other was Jason Kokrak, but only after J.T. Poston made bogey on his final hole.
The final day to earn the eight automatic spots on the Presidents Cup changed nothing for either team.
Bryson DeChambeau held onto the final spot for the Americans when Tony Finau, who needed to finish alone in third, closed with a 69 and finished fourth. Jason Day failed to work his way into an automatic spot for the International side.
Barron prevails
Doug Barron became the 13th Monday qualifier to win a Champions Tour event, holing two 15-foot birdie putts after a rain delay to beat Fred Couples by 2 at the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open in Endicott, N.Y.
Making his second senior start after turning 50 last month, Barron closed with a 6-under 66 at at En Joie Golf Club to finish the wire-to-wire victory at 17-under 199. With Couples in the clubhouse after a 63, Barron returned from the rain delay to hole the first 15-footer on the par-4 15th to break a tie for the lead, then doubled the advantage with the second one on the par-3 17th.
“I had fun,” Barron said. “I enjoyed every minute of it. Honestly, when you’re competing and you can bring out your best at the end, that’s cool stuff. That was fun for me. That birdie at 17 was just money to me.”
The 59-year-old Couples was back at En Joie for the first time in 24 years. He won the PGA Tour’s 1991 B.C. Open at the course.
Ogletree champ
Andy Ogletree was in danger of being blown out of the U.S. Amateur final. He kept his poise — and his confidence — and came back to win, rallying to beat John
Augenstein 2and1. Ogletree was 4-down early in the morning round of the 36-hole final at Pinehurst’s renovated No. 4 but won four of the final seven holes on the No. 2 course to claim the championship matchup of 21-year-old seniors.
“I showed a lot of resilience out there and never gave up,” Ogletree said. “Kept telling myself I’m going to win this tournament and always believed that. Even when I was 4 down through six (holes), I just kept telling myself ... keep hitting fairways, keep hitting greens and it’ll eventually go your way.”
Ogletree and Augenstein headline the United States’ final seven additions to its Walker Cup team. The seven players were announced last night by the USGA following the U.S. Amateur.
Joining Ogletree and Augenstein on the team captained by 1981 U.S. Amateur champion Nathaniel Crosby are Steven Fisk, John Pak, Isaiah Salinds, Alex Smalley and Brandon Wu.
Akshay Bhatia, Stewart Hagestad and Cole Hammer were previously added to the U.S. team that will face Britain and Ireland next month at Royal Liverpool . ...
Thomas Pieters shot a 3-under 69 to become the first golfer to win the Czech Masters for the second time, beating Adri Arnaus of Spain by 1 stroke.