With big break and great shot, Malnati wins Valspar and earns trip to Masters
PALM HARBOR, Fla. (AP) — Some of the shots that left Peter Malnati frustrated on the back nine were the ones that worked out so well for him Sunday in the Valspar Championship.
A putt he thought he left short dropped for birdie on the 12th hole. A shot into the 16th in mangled rough was close enough to a sprinkler that he was entitled to a free drop that put him on the fringe and made par easier.
But there was no doubting the winner.
Locked in a battle with hard-luck Cameron Young, Malnati drilled a 5-iron into the wind to 6 feet on the par3 17th for birdie to break out of a tie, and he closed with a par for a 4-under 67 to win by two and earn his first trip to the Masters.
“I remember telling my caddie I needed to make a 2,” Malnati said. “That was really fun in that moment to just step up, not overthink it, just a full 5-iron at the TV tower, go. And to watch that ball fly was a really cool feeling.”
Malnati tapped in that yellow golf ball for par on the final hole for only his second PGA Tour victory. Young, made it easier on him by taking bogey on the final hole for a 68. Young now has seven runner-up finishes without a win.
Malnati finished at 12-under 272, his first victory since the Sanderson Farms Championship in 2015.
More than the $1,512,000 from winning, Malnati goes to the Masters for the first time and gets a two-year exemption. He also is assured of getting into the remaining four $20 million signature events without any help.
Malnati is one of six player-directors on the PGA Tour board, and he was singled out for criticism when he received a sponsor exemption — along with two other board members — to the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
“I told myself to do my best on every shot,” Malnati said as he fought back tears. “I was so nervous coming down the stretch. I can’t describe it. It’s so cool.”
It was gut-wrenching for Young, one of the top young talents and power players in golf who can’t seem to get across the line. He shot 31 on the back nine at St. Andrews in the 2022 British Open, only to finish one shot behind Cameron Smith, who shot 30. Young also was in the hunt until the 16th hole of the 2022 PGA Championship.
“It was just a bad time for a pull,” Young said of his tee shot on the 18th.
Mackenzie Hughes of Canada (70) and PGA Tour rookie Chandler Phillips (69) tied for third. They were among five players who had at least a share of the lead in the final round at Innisbrook.
Keith Mitchell started the day with a two-shot lead but struggled in a round of 77. Seamus Power, playing with Mitchell in the final group, shot 76.