Steele hits groove at Silverado
Brendan Steele joined good company Sunday. Soon after Steele won his second consecutive Safeway Open, a local reporter mentioned other golfers to earn two victories at Silverado Resort.
Among those on the list, including PGA Tour and Champions Tour events: Billy Casper, Johnny Miller, Lee Trevino and Miller Barber. “That’s an unbelievable list,” Steele said. “I’m obviously not the caliber of those players, but that’s a nice accomplishment. I will definitely cherish that.”
Steele, a 34-year-old tour pro who lives in Irvine, now has two of his three career wins on Silverado’s North Course. He survived a blustery final round during which the wind whipped at 15 to 25 mph, with gusts reaching 30 mph.
Steele still shot 69 to finish the tournament at 15-underpar, two strokes ahead of Tony Finau. He also posted 69 on Sunday, forcing Steele to finish strong — he made birdies on Nos. 16 and 18 — to seal the deal.
“That was about as hard as it could play,” Steele said of course conditions. “Balls were blowing all over the place.”
Steele was born in Idyllwild (Riverside County) and played in college at UC Riverside. He cited his California background as the main reason he plays so well at Silverado, and feels so comfortable on the greens.
Mahan resurfaces: Hunter Mahan — remember him? — had a good week, and that’s noteworthy.
Mahan’s tie for 13th was his best finish in more than two years, since he tied for fourth at the playoff event outside Boston in September 2015. He has been mired in an epic slump — struggling with his swing, changing coaches, understandably preoccupied with family life (three kids younger than 4½).
Put it this way: Mahan reached a career-high No. 4 in the world ranking after he won the Houston Open in April 2012. He arrived in Napa last week at No. 729. Mahan’s solid showing will boost his ranking. And, at age 35, he still has time to revitalize his career — not to mention nearly $30 million in PGA Tour earnings. Briefly: Stanford alum Maverick McNealy shot 74 and fell into a tie for 52nd in his professional debut. … Brandon Harkins, who grew up in Walnut Creek, shot Sunday’s low round (68) to soar into a tie for ninth in his first start as a PGA Tour member. … Other notable players: Zach Johnson posted 71 (tie for 13th) and John Daly wobbled home in 79 (to finish 72nd).