Reed snakes shot by tree on the way to first PGA win
Unlikely birdie on second hole of playoff clinches it
GREENSBORO, N.C. In the span of a couple of strokes, Patrick Reed went from almost certain disaster to his first PGA Tour victory.
Reed won the Wyndham Championship on Sunday for his first title, beating Jordan Spieth with a most improbable birdie on the second hole of a playoff.
Reed recovered from a drive on the par-4 10th that came a few feet from going out of bounds and stopped in some pine needles in the woods near a television cable.
Reed pulled out his 7-iron, uncorked a baseball swing from an uphill lie and sent the ball under a tree branch — yet away from the tree trunk — to land his second shot seven feet from the pin.
“It was the best shot of my life, that’s for sure,” said Reed.
Spieth, who called it “one of the best shots I’ve ever witnessed,” had reached the green in two strokes, but his 10-foot birdie putt trickled wide of the cup.
Reed then sank his short birdie putt that “felt like it was 40” feet to end it.
“Just to get my first win means everything to me,” said Reed.
Reed, who had his third straight top-10 finish, earned $954,000 in prize money and 500 FedEx Cup points for winning the final tournament before the playoffs.
Reed and Spieth finished regulation at 14-under 266. Reed closed with a 4-under 66 and Spieth had a 65.
The 20-year-old Spieth, the John Deere winner in a playoff last month, was denied in his bid to become youngest two-time champion in the modern era of the PGA Tour.
John Huh and Brian Harman were two strokes behind. Harman had a 66 and Huh shot 68. Matt Jones matched the tournament record for a final round with a 62 and finished at 11-under along with Matt Every (67) and Zach Johnson (68).
Reed — who let a threestroke lead on the back nine slip away — missed a chance to win it on the first playoff hole, the par-4 18th.
Spieth recovered from a terrible drive and saved par with a snaking 25-foot putt.
Reed pushed his seven-foot birdie putt wide of the hole, sending it to a second extra hole.
“I don’t even know how I was still playing (the second playoff hole) after what happened on 18,” said Spieth.
Spieth and Huh both caught Reed at 14-under down the stretch in regulation.
At roughly the same time Reed bogeyed the par-3 16th, Spieth birdied the par4 17th and closed with a par. Huh quickly slipped off the pace after finishing with two bogeys.