Koepka wins Phoenix Open on late eagle
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Brooks Koepka chipped in from 32 yards for eagle on the 17th hole to break a tie for the lead and then parred the last for a one-stroke victory Sunday in the Waste Management Phoenix Open.
Five strokes behind Jordan Spieth and Xander Schauffele entering the round, Koepka shot a 6-under 65 to finish at 19-under 265. The four-time major champion also won in 2015 at TPC Scottsdale for the first of his eight PGA Tour titles.
On the 334-yard 17th, Koepka hit a fairway wood 305 yards to the fairway short and left of the green, then holed out to the largest roar of the day from the crowd limited to 5,000 a day — a fraction of the usual size but the most on tour during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Back at full strength after lingering left knee and hip problems, Koepka rebounded from a bogey on the second with an eagle on the par-5 third and birdied Nos. 13-15.
Schauffele birdied the par-4 18th for a 71 to tie for second with Kyoung-hoon Lee (68). Lee birdied 17 to pull within one of Koepka, but drove right on the par-4 18th and had his 34-foot birdie try slide by on the high side.
Steve Stricker, the 53-year-old U.S.
Ryder Cup captain who was trying to become the oldest winner on the PGA Tour, shot a 67 to tie for fourth with Spieth (72) and Carlos Ortiz (64) at 17 under.
Spieth and Schauffele struggled from the start, with Spieth bogeying the first hole after nearly driving into a desert bush. They each had two bogeys on the front nine, with Schauffele making the only birdie between the two on the front side on No. 9.
■ European PGA: At King Abdullah Economic City, Saudi Arabia, Top-ranked Dustin Johnson won the Saudi International for the second time in three years on Sunday after shooting a 2-under 68 in the final round to finish two strokes clear of Justin Rose and Tony Finau. Johnson, who was also runner-up in 2020, recorded his highest scoring round of the tournament at Royal Greens Golf Club but still finished top of the leaderboard on 15-under overall. Scotland’s Calum Hill eagled the par-five 18th to finish in a tie for fourth with France’s Victor Perez.