Spieth holes out on first playoff hole to win Travelers
CROMWELL, CONN. » Jordan Spieth needed an extra hole, a little bit of luck and an amazing final shot to finish off a wire-to-wire victory in the Travelers Championship.
The two-time major champion holed out from 60 feet for birdie from a greenside bunker on the first hole of a playoff with Daniel Berger on Sunday at TPC River Highlands.
The 23-year-old Texan joined Tiger Woods as the only PGA Tour players in the era since World War II with 10 victories before the age of 24. Woods won 15 times before he turned 24.
“That was one for the ages,” said Spieth, also the winner at Pebble Beach in February.
Spieth held a one-stroke edge after each of the first three rounds. He closed with an even-par 70 to match Berger — who birdied three of the final six holes for a 67 — at 12-under 268. WALMART NW ARKANSAS CHAMPIONSHIP » So Yeon Ryu became the LPGA Tour’s first two-time winner this season, taking the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship with a tournament-record 18-under 195 total.
Five strokes ahead after a course-record 10-uner 61 on Saturday, the third-ranked Ryu closed with a 69 for a two-shot victory over fellow South Korean player Amy Yang and Thailand’s Moriya Jutanugarn.
Ryu has five LPGA Tour victories, also winning the major ANA Inspiration in April in a playoff with Lexi Thompson. Ryu won at Pinnacle Country Club four years after losing a playoff to Inbee Park in event. AMERICAN FAMILY INSURANCE OPEN » Fred Couples rallied to win the American Family Insurance Open for his second PGA Tour Champions title of the year and 13th overall.
The 57-year-old Couples shot a 6-under 66 in cool and windy conditions at University Ridge for a twoshot victory over Scott Verplank. Couples birdied six of the first 11 holes and finished at 15-under 201.
Couples also won the 50-and-over tour’s Chubb Classic in February in Florida. The Hall of Famer, long hampered by back problems, won 15 times on the PGA Tour — his lone major coming in the 1992 Masters.
Verplank shot a 69. LINCOLN LAND CHARITY CHAMPIONSHIP » Adam Schenk won the Web.com Tour’s Lincoln Land Charity Championship with a birdie on the second hole of a playoff with Eric Axley, William Kropp and Kyle Thompson.
Schenk made a 25-foot putt on the par-4 18th for his first tour victory after closing with a bogey on the hole in regulation to fall into the playoff.
The 25-year-old former Purdue player shot a 1-over 72 to match Axley (66), Kropp (67) and thirdround leader Thompson (74) at 14-under 270 at Panther Creek. ISLAND RESORT CHAMPIONSHIP » Emma Talley won the Island Resort Championship or her first Symetra Tour title when rain washed out the final round.
The 23-year-old former University of Alabama star shot a 3-under 69 on Sunday morning in the completion of the suspended second round to reach 9-under 135.
Talley earned $22,500 to jump from 14th to fourth on the money list with $43,618, with the final top 10 earning LPGA Tour cards. She won the 2013 U.S Women’s Amateur and 2015 NCAA individual title.