Victory drought is broken as Watson reigns at Riviera
Bubba Watson ended two years without winning by picking up his third victory at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles.
Watson seized control Sunday with two par putts and a bunker shot he holed for birdie on the par-3 14th hole. He closed with a 2-under-par 69 for a two-shot victory — the 10th of his PGA Tour career — over runners-up Kevin Na and Tony Finau.
“My goal has always been to get 10 wins,” Watson said. “So many emotions going through my head right now. You never know if you’re going to play good again. You never know if you’re going to lift the trophy.”
It was Watson’s first victory since he won at Riviera two years ago — the longest drought of the decade for the two-time Masters champion. He joined Ben Hogan and Lloyd Mangrum as threetime winners at Riviera. Hogan’s victories include a U.S. Open.
Na hit a wedge close to perfection from the worst angle on the reachable par-4 10th hole for a birdie and two-putted for birdie on the 11th to briefly take the lead. He fell back with consecutive bogeys and shot 69. Finau lurked all day. His last chance was an eagle putt on the 17th that stopped inches short of the hole.
Patrick Cantlay had a one-shot lead going to the back nine until he ran into tree trouble on the 12th and 13th holes. The UCLA alum could do no better than pars the rest of the way for a 71 to tie for fourth with Scott Stallings (68).
Watson moves into the top 50 and is eligible for the World Golf Championship, which begins March 1 in Mexico. LPGA Tour: South Korea’s Jin Young Ko shot a 3-under 69 to clinch a three-shot win at the Women’s Australian Open in Adelaide.
Playing in her first tournament as a full LPGA member, Ko shot 65, 69, 71, 69 to finish at 14-under 274 at the Kooyonga Golf Club. She is the first player to win her first tournament as an LPGA member in the tour’s 67-year history.
Ko started the day four shots clear of 21-year-old Hannah Green, who was bidding to become the first Australian to win her national crown since Karrie Webb won the last of her five titles in 2014.
Green shot a 69 but missed a birdie on the 18th that cost her a share of second place, which went to Ko’s compatriot, Hyejin Choi (67). PGA Tour Champions: Joe Durant birdied the final two holes to win the Chubb Classic in Naples, Fla, by four shots.
Durant shot a 5-under 67 to finish at 19-under 197. Steve Stricker, David Toms, Lee Janzen, Billy Mayfair and Tim Petrovic tied for second.
John Daly had a hole-inone in a 67 to get to 13under. He used an 8-iron on the 16th for the ace. European Tour: Joost Luiten of the Netherlands won the inaugural Oman Open in Muscat to break a title drought of nearly 17 months. The 32-year-old Dutchman shot a 4-under 68 to finish at 16-under 272, two shots ahead of England’s Chris Wood (69).