FOR THE RECORD
FRANCESCO MOLINARI DOMINANT IN FIRST PGA TOUR VICTORY
POTOMAC, Md. — Francesco Molinari was torn between Paris and Washington until the last minute.
There was no doubting his decision Sunday afternoon, not with his name on a silver trophy in the shape of the U.S. Capitol, the lowest 72-hole score of his career and a stretch of golf that was close to flawless.
“The thought was just to keep pushing, keep making birdies and don’t give anyone a chance,” Molinari said.
Molinari faced a 15-foot par putt on the ninth hole that he poured into the center of the cup to keep a three-shot lead. He holed a 50-foot eagle putt on the 10th. He hit a 6-iron shot to set up a two-foot birdie putt on No. 11, one of the hardest par 4s on the PGA Tour — it had yielded only one other birdie all day.
Three birdies later, he was nine shots clear and on his way to an 8-under-par 62 and a dominant victory in the Quicken Loans National.
The European Tour’s French Open offered valuable Ryder Cup points on a course where the matches will be played this fall. The National was in its final edition, with one of the weakest fields it has ever had, in the most oppressive heat the Italian had ever played.
Molinari picked the PGA Tour because he was No. 123 in the FedEx Cup standings and wanted to improve his position, especially after missing the Tour Championship by what amounted to one shot last year.
“Seems like it was the right choice in the end,” he said.
He finished at 21-under 259 at TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm, breaking the tournament record by seven shots. He won by eight shots over Ryan Armour (68), matching the largest margin of victory this year on the PGA Tour. Sung Kang (64) was third at 12 under, and Abraham Ancer (72) — who shared the 54-hole lead with Molinari — tied for fourth with Tiger Woods (66) at 11 under.
“It was a lot easier than I thought,” Molinari said with a wide grin. “I played great. The start of the back nine was incredible.”
Woods had his lowest final-round score in more than five years. He was never close but turned in his best result since a runner-up finish at the Valspar Championship three months ago.
Chattanooga’s Stephan Jaeger made a charge up the leaderboard with five birdies on his first 16 holes Sunday, but he had to settle for a 68 and a share of 13th at 7 under after making a double bogey on the 17th and a bogey on the 18th. The former Baylor School and University of Tennessee at Chattanooga standout added $133,125 and 56 FedEx Cup points to his rookie season haul.
Ancer, Armour, Kang and Bronson Burgoon (68) — who shared sixth with Beau Hossler (68) at 10 under — earned spots in the British Open.
Park takes major in playoff
KILDEER, Ill. — Sung Hyun Park raised her arms and placed her hands on her head before hugging her caddie and wiping away tears. She simply could not contain her emotions after winning her second major championship — and doing so in such dramatic fashion.
Park beat So Yeon Ryu on the second hole of a playoff in the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. After a brief rain delay on the par-4 16th hole at Kemper Lakes Golf Club, Ryu’s putt for birdie rolled past, and Park finished off her South Korean compatriot with a 10-footer.
“Actually, this is my first time feeling this kind of emotion, being this emotional,” Ryu said through an interpreter. “And I was really happy, like, I couldn’t help that.”
Japan’s Nasa Hataoka, after shooting an 8-under 64 to post a 72-hole score of 10-under 278, dropped out of the playoff with a par on the par-4 18th. Ryu made a 20-footer for birdie from the fringe, and Park followed from 10 feet.
Park had closed with a 69 and Ryu a 73. Ryu, who led by three strokes after 54 holes, took a two-stroke lead on the 16th hole Sunday but hit into the water on the par-3 17th on her way to a double bogey. Park made a brilliant par save on 16 after she dug out from the water’s edge but missed chances to gain ground on the final two holes.
Nine strokes behind Ryu entering the day, the 19-year-old Hataoka — coming off a win at the NW Arkansas Championship — nearly pulled off one of the biggest comebacks in LPGA Tour history. In the end, the 24-year-old Park added another major title to go with her win at the 2017 U.S. Women’s Open and took home a $547,500 prize.
Jessica Korda (68) and Angel Yin (71) tied for fourth at 7 under, while Brooke Henderson (74) — second through three rounds — and Charley Hull (67) shared sixth at 6 under.
Putts key for Toms at finish
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — David Toms made one long putt to take the lead, then another one to preserve it on his way to a one-shot victory at the U.S. Senior Open.
Toms sank a 15-foot birdie putt on the par-3 16th hole at Broadmoor Golf Club to go up, then held on with a 20-foot downhill make after laying up from a fairway bunker on the 17th hole.
The 2001 PGA Championship winner saved par with a downhill knee-knocker from three feet away on No. 18 to close out his par round of 70. Toms finished at 3-under 277 to edge Miguel Angel Jimenez (69), Jerry Kelly (72) and Tim Petrovic (70).
Toms, 51, hadn’t won on the PGA Tour or the PGA Tour Champions in more than seven years, but this United States Golf Association major — one in which the greens perplexed the entire field for four straight days — was the end of the line for that slump.
Jimenez and Petrovic each made birdies on the 18th to get to 2 under. Kelly led after the first three rounds, but he finished the tournament without making a putt longer than 12 feet.
Noren rallies at French Open
PARIS — Alex Noren stepped up when his rivals stumbled, closing with a 4-under 67 for a one-shot victory at the French Open.
It’s the 10th career European Tour victory for the 35-year-old Swede, who started the day seven shots behind compatriot and 54-hole leader Marcus Kinhult. Noren birdied two of his last three holes to finish at 7-under 277, with Scotland’s Russell Knox (65), the United States’ Julian Suri (69) and England’s Chris Wood (73) sharing second.
Knox made a final-round charge with six birdies, but none came over the final four holes, a stretch in which Wood made two bogeys. Suri closed with a double bogey.
The 21-year-old Kinhult, who had a two-shot lead after three rounds, struggled to a 76 and shared fifth place at 5 under with sixth-ranked Jon Rahm and Matthew Southgate at Le Golf National, which will host the Ryder Cup in September.
Tied for eighth at 4 under were second-ranked Justin Thomas (71), Alexander Bjork (70), Jorge Campillo (66) and Sergio Garcia (74).