Schauffele wins Travelers with birdie on final hole

Xander Schauffele won the PGA Tour’s Travelers Championship in Cromwell, Conn., with a three-stroke swing on the final hole Sunday, hitting to 3 feet for birdie after rookie Sahith Theegala took two shots to get out of a bunker and made a double bogey in the group ahead.

A stroke ahead entering the day, Schauffele finished with a 2-under-par 68 at TPC River Highlands to beat Theegala and J.T. Poston by two strokes. The Olympic champion had a 19-under 261 total.

“My mind was telling me to hit a good drive and then use your sand wedge or lob wedge in there and make birdie,” Schauffele said. “To sit there and watch what happened was a bit of a shock, obviously. I really had to try and focus on the task at hand.”

Theegala shot a 67, and Poston had a 64.

Schauffele won for the sixth time on the PGA Tour and the second time this season after teaming with Patrick Cantlay to win the Zurich Classic in April.

DP World Tour: Li Haotong sank a 40-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole to edge Thomas Pieters for the title in the BMW International Open in Munich.

Li shot 2-under 70 and Pieters a 5-under 67 in the final round to leave them at 22-under for the tournament. Li’s birdie putt became a winner when Pieters missed a 10-footer that could have extended the playoff.

“Ten months ago … I just literally decided to quit golf,” Li said. “Somehow, where I am now, it’s hard to describe. I had no idea I could win this playoff. Luckily, things happened for me again.”

PGA Tour Champions: Padraig Harrington holed a 30-foot birdie putt on the 15th right when the last of his five-shot lead was about to vanish, and he closed with three tough pars for a 1-over 72 and a one-shot win over Steve Stricker at the U.S. Senior Open in Bethlehem, Pa.

Harrington finished at 10under 274 to become the third player in the past three U.S. Senior Opens to win in his debut, following Jim Furyk last year and Stricker in 2019.

Stricker, who started the final round eight shots behind, began making his run with consecutive birdies to finish the front nine, and he closed with two straight birdies for a 65.

“It’s tough to lead from the front,” Harrington said. “It’s even tougher when it’s Steve Stricker behind you. He tends to have one on me. I’m happy enough to get it done in the end.”