Day: July 10, 2017

Monday Finish: Shauffele secures first TOUR winMonday Finish: Shauffele secures first TOUR win

In the final round of The Greenbrier Classic, Xander Schauffele sticks his 162-yard tee shot to three feet to birdie 18 and pick up his first PGA TOUR win at The Old White TPC. Welcome to the Monday Finish, where Schauffele, 23, in just his 24th TOUR start, becomes the latest from the decorated high school Class of 2011 to enter the winner’s circle. FIVE OBSERVATIONS 1. Much has been made of Schauffele’s tee shot on 18, but the start of his hot streak goes back to his ‘tree shot’ on 18—a shot that almost nobody saw. It was June 5, and Schauffele had lost his drive into the trees on the last hole of regulation at the U.S. Open sectional qualifier at Germantown Country Club in Memphis. He didn’t panic. Instead, he threaded his second shot through the timber and back into the fairway; birdied the hole to get into a 5-for-2 playoff; got through that playoff the next morning; and ultimately finished T5 at the U.S. Open at Erin Hills. “Huge for me mentally,â€� Schauffele, a former San Diego State All-American, said of his U.S. Open performance. With the T5 and his win at The Greenbrier three weeks later, he now has punched his ticket to the next four majors. He also jumped from 94th to 27th in the FedExCup, setting himself up for a deep run through the playoffs. “Being a rookie, my only goal was to just make the playoffs and maintain—just stay on the PGA TOUR,â€� he said. 2. “Everyone that knows me knows I’m a late bloomer,â€� Schauffele said. Wait. What? He was a winner at San Diego State, graduated from the Web.com Tour to the PGA TOUR after one year, and at age 23 won in just his 24th TOUR start. But here’s the thing: Schauffele is part of golf’s high school Class of 2011, a group of baton-twirling overachievers that includes, among others, Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas and Daniel Berger. Oh, and there’s also Jon Rahm, another guy who picked up a win this season before Schauffele, and who won the European Tour’s Irish Open on Sunday. “I always joke with my buddies saying it’s not cool to be 23 and on the PGA TOUR anymore,â€� Schauffele said, “since everyone that’s been 22, 23, 24, they’re all winning. So, I guess kudos to them for kind of pushing me along.â€� 3. Speaking of the Class of 2011, Colombia’s Sebastian Munoz continues to be a winning personality on TOUR, even if he hasn’t yet won. His putting? Brilliant. (For three of the four rounds, anyway.) His decision to turn off his phone and distract himself with 80s movies like Ferris Bueller’s Day Off? Brilliant. His final-round 72 and T3 finish at The Old White TPC? Okay, that was less than brilliant, but after watching him play so well through two rounds at the FedEx St. Jude Classic, and three at The Greenbrier, it was nice to see Munoz get a nice consolation prize, a berth in The Open Championship. Munoz, who moved from 198th to 140th in the FedExCup, admitted he was feeling dejected as he walked off the 18th green until his caddie reminded him he’d earned a trip to Royal Birkdale. “The first major, I would never have thought it was going to be The Open Championship,â€� Munoz said. “So it’s awesome.â€� 4. Want to win on the PGA TOUR? Statistically, your best bet is still to play from behind. Schauffele was three behind Munoz entering the final round, and was the seventh come-from-behind winner at The Greenbrier in the tournament’s seven-year history. (Technically it’s been around for eight years, but flooding ended last year’s tournament before it began.) Only six of 34 first-round leaders/co-leaders have gone on to win, and 11 of 34 third-round leaders/co-leaders. 5. Phil Mickelson’s first tournament with his brother Tim on the bag was a success. Absent his usual caddie, pal Jim “Bonesâ€� Mackay, who caddied for Mickelson for 25 years, Lefty did more than just make the cut at The Greenbrier. His 6-under 64 Sunday was his best final round since an 8-under 62 at the 2014 World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational. He moved up 41 places to finish T20, and enjoyed the company of his little brother. For his part, Tim Mickelson, a player-agent for Jon Rahm, kept one eye on the Irish Open, which Rahm won hours before the conclusion of The Greenbrier. “That was a nice plus,â€� Phil Mickelson said of Rahm’s victory. “But [Tim is] just a fun guy to be around. I just love being around him. We had a great first week, and I’m looking forward to spending more time with him.â€� FIVE INSIGHTS 1. Schauffele became the seventh TOUR winner this season to rank inside the top 10 in strokes gained: off the tee (+1.224, 2nd) and strokes gained: putting (+1.433, 6th). He made 102 feet, 6 inches of putts per round at The Old White TPC, which was 23 feet more than his season average. He also made the longest putt by a TOUR winner this season, a 59 foot, 6 inch draino at the 12th hole in round three (see Top 3 Videos below). That was barely longer than the previous record-holder, Billy Horschel, whose 59 foot, 3 inch make at the 14th hole propelled him to victory at the AT&T Byron Nelson. 2. Munoz’s putting drop-off was shocking. He made 396 feet of putts while leading through three rounds—the second most through 54 holes on TOUR this season, behind only Russel Henley at the Shell Houston Open (408 feet). He was 35 of 35 inside six feet, and had jarred a field-leading 14 putts of more than 10 feet. Then he went from the sublime to the ridiculous. Suddenly ice cold Sunday, Munoz made just 32 feet of putts, his longest make measuring three feet, 10 inches. 3. Robert Streb finished second for the second straight Greenbrier Classic, although his last runner-up finish, to Danny Lee, came in 2015. (Flooding canceled last year’s tournament.) Streb will rue his double-bogey at the par-4 13th hole, but after his eighth straight round in the 60s at The Old White TPC, he moves from 137th to 68th in the FedExCup. 4. The Greenbrier sits at an elevation of 2,000 feet, which may not seem like much but was enough to skew the driving distance numbers. Although FedExCup leader Dustin Johnson is tied for first, year-to-date, in that stat (312.1 yards), seemingly everyone blew past that number at The Greenbrier. Winner Schauffele averaged 317.9 yards per poke, which was only 15th best in the field. Streb was at 323.9 (sixth). Tops in the field: Tony Finau, at 338.3 yards per drive. 5. Sunday marked yet another TOUR event won by a player under 25, a list of winners that includes but is not limited to Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Jon Rahm, Si Woo Kim, Daniel Berger and now Schauffele. That’s a big season for the kids, and a bright future for golf. TOP 3 VIDEOS 1. 2. 3.

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