Schauffele birdies final hole to win Greenbrier Classic
WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. — Rookie Xander Schauffele made a 3-foot birdie putt on the final hole Sunday to win The Greenbrier Classic by a stroke over Robert Streb for his first PGA Tour victory.
Schauffele closed with a 3-under 67 and finished at 14-under 266 to cap a daylong duel with Streb and third-round leader Sebastian Munoz.
Streb shot 69. Munoz had a 72 to tie for third with Jamie Lovemark at 12 under. Lovemark shot 69.
After Schauffele’s birdie, Streb found the left fringe on the 161yard 18th and his chip that would have forced a playoff came up short. Munoz needed to ace the 18th to tie it, but settled for par.
At age 53, Davis Love III fell short in his bid to become the oldest winner in tour history. He shot 75 and tied for 29th at 5 under.
Jon Rahm enhanced his burgeoning reputation by winning the Irish Open in Portstewart, Northern Ireland, by six strokes and a record tournament score on Sunday, shooting a 7-under 65 in a final round marked by two eagles and rules controversy. The 22-year-old Rahm, one of the hottest young players in world golf, holed out from 150 yards for eagle on No. 4 and strung together four straight birdies from No. 7 to turn what promised to be a tight final day into a procession at Portstewart Golf Club. The 11th-ranked Spaniard added a second eagle with a long putt on the par-5 14th to put more distance to his chasers, led by David Drysdale following his course- record 63 early Sunday. Rahm finished on 24-under 264 overall — breaking the record to par by three shots — for a second victory of 2017, and in little more than a year as a professional. Rahm avoided being handed a two-shot penalty for replacing his ball incorrectly on the 6th green, following emails and calls from TV viewers. Andy McFee, chief referee of the European Tour, said Rahm made a “reasonable judgment” after having moved his marker one putter length to the side to get it off the line of playing partner Daniel Im. “I know it’s a little suspicious sometimes but I knowingly did it,” Rahm said. “I moved my marker so it was not in the way of Daniel’s and put it back, and when I replaced my ball I thought it was in the same exact spot.” When told by McFee on the 13th hole that there had been complaints, Rahm said: “I told him, ‘ Listen, if it’s a penalty stroke, let me know now, I’ll accept it.’”
Katherine Kirk won the Thornberry Creek LPGA Classic in Oneida, Wisconsin on Sunday, matching Ashleigh Buhai with a birdie on the fi nal hole for a one-stroke victory. Four strokes ahead of Buhai entering the round, Kirk made a 10-foot birdie putt on the par-4 18th for a 2-under 70. She finished at 22-under 266 in the first year event at Thornberry Creek — the Oneida Nation-owned resort near Green Bay. “Ashleigh played great all day,” Kirk said. “I put the pressure on her. Pretty fun finish there. I knew I had to make it. She played great, so all credit to her.” The 35-year-old Australian won her third LPGA Tour title and first in 152 starts since the 2010 Navistar LPGA Classic. She also won the 2008 Canadian Women’s Open. “So much hard work and patience,” Kirk said. “I had a rough couple years like 2015 and 2016, and just an amazing team behind me. My husband has been 100 percent supportive the whole time. I can’t put it into words. It’s just a great feeling.” Kirk earned $300,000 and secured a spot next week in the U.S. Women’s Open. She had six birdies and four bogeys Sunday after opening with rounds of 68, 63 and 65. Buhai, from South Africa, shot a 67. “We both played great this week,” Buhai said about Kirk. “Today, 5 under, no bogeys. I had three lip-outs on the back nine, but I hit the putts and the shots that I had to just keep hitting.”