Schauffele ties course record and wins Sentry Tournament of Champions

SOUTHAMPTON, Bermuda — Lucas Herbert had two birdies during the toughest, wind-blown stretch of Port Royal and held steady to the end Sunday for a 2-under 69 to win the Butterfield Bermuda Championship. RELATED: Leaderboard | Winner’s Bag: Lucas Herbert, Butterfield Bermuda Championship | Local pro with cancer inspires at Butterfield Bermuda Championship Herbert closed with four pars to hold off Danny Lee (71) and Patrick Reed, who finished with four birdies over his last six holes for a 65 and then waited to see if it would be enough. Herbert, the 25-year-old Australian who won the Irish Open earlier on the European Tour this year, stayed in front by closing with two good par saves and missing a pair of 7-foot birdie attempts he didn’t need. His first PGA TOUR victory, and third worldwide, sends him to the Masters for the first time. “It opens up so many doors,” said Herbert, who earned his PGA TOUR card through the Korn Ferry Tour Finals two months ago. He had missed the cut in his other two starts this season. The wind and rain, which caused tee times to be moved up, was as fierce as advertised, and play was halted briefly without having to bring the players off the course. “I felt like I grinded really well early and I had the right attitude going into the day that it wasn’t going to be easy,” Herbert said. “You just knew it was going to be one of those days where you had to battle really, really hard. Under par was going to be a great score.” He finished at 15-under 269. Taylor Pendrith of Canada, who started the final round with a three-shot lead, failed to make a birdie in closing with a 76 to tie for fifth. Pendrith had three straight bogeys starting at No. 6 and was still very much in the mix, one shot behind going to the reachable par-5 17th. But he pulled his drive into the water, hit his third into the water and missed a 5-foot putt to take double bogey. He wasn’t the only player who can look back at missed chances. Danny Lee had a one-shot lead and appeared to be in control of his game until it all fell apart for him on the 12th hole. He went long of the green, pitched to the back collar and then used a fairway metal to bump his shot about 7 feet by the hole, missing that to take double bogey. Herbert rolled in a 20-foot birdie putt and went from one shot behind to the lead. After a bogey on the par-3 13th, Herbert made a 30-foot birdie putt to get to 15-under par. Reed was well ahead of them and didn’t appear to be in the mix until he knocked in a pair of 30-foot birdie putts, made a 12-foot par putt on the par-3 16th and finished with two birdies. That wasn’t the best round of the day. Scott Stallings started 14 shots behind, began his round on No. 10 and pulled to within two shots before running out of birdies. Stallings still managed a 62 and went from a tie for 50th to a tie for fifth. Patrick Rodgers had a 70 and finished alone in fourth. Lee followed his double bogey with a pair of bogeys before making one last push. He birdied the next three holes, sending his tee shot on the par-3 16th out over the ocean and letting the wind bring it back to 15 feet. Trailing Herbert by one on the 18th, Lee missed the green and had to get up-and-down for par. Herbert played wisely and conservatively, using his power to lean on a driving iron on the final two holes that eliminated trouble. “This finishing stretch kind of played into my hands a little bit,” Herbert said. “I felt like probably the strengths of my game — the longer game, whether it be long irons or 3-woods, drivers off tee — I felt like that really played in my wheelhouse. So I just tried to really stay positive with the swings.”

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Here are nine tidbits from the first round of the Sony Open in Hawaii at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu that gamers can use tomorrow, this weekend or down the road. Be looking for the Emergency 9 shortly after the close of play of each round of the tournament. Know Thy Enemy These were the top 10 picked golfers in the PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO. The decisions might have been a bit more difficult this week with a field of 144 instead of 34. Now you know who you’re up against! Lead Dawg Chris Kirk (Georgia Bulldogs) fired a bogey-free 63 in the morning wave to grab the lead. Kirk matched his opening-round 63 at The RSM Classic to wrap up the 2017 season (T4). This is the fifth time in the last six years that he’s posted 65 or lower at Waialae. He posted back-to-back finishes inside the top five in this event in 2013-14 with T5 and solo second. Co-Lead Dawg Zach Johnson (Drake Bulldogs) shares the lead also with a bogey-free 63. This Dawg didn’t have the pain and suffering as his friends from Athens after Georgia lost to Alabama in the College Football Playoff on Monday night. Johnson, similarly to Kirk, was posting low ones at the end of last year with a closing 64 at Mayakoba before a third round 64 at The RSM Classic (T8). The 2009 champ was late arriving because of the flu but he’s hit the ground running and looks to grab his fourth top 10 in the last five years. Hardy Har-Harman The way he’s been playing in recent weeks is no laughing matter. His 64 to open suggests he’s not satisfied collecting top 10s. Harman played in the final group the final three rounds last week and finished third, his fourth straight outing inside the top 10. Hop on that saddle and have both hands on the reigns! The Old Man and the Sea As I wrote about in The Confidence Factor, Waialae is Jerry Kelly’s happy place. Sure, he’s 51 but he’s also the second-highest earner in the history of this event. This is his 21st start and his opening round 66 will put him in a great position to make his 16th weekend. His MC last year broke up a streak of three in a row in the top 10. Think Fred Couples at Augusta if you need a comparison! Tide Rolling Defending champion Justin Thomas (67) posted his worst round in five trips as he didn’t sign for anything over 65 in setting the tournament scoring record last year. With Jim “Bones” McKay on the bag for the first time, Thomas didn’t square a bogey and made three birdies. The wind, as expected, was not a factor on Thursday so he’s in excellent shape for Friday morning to get even lower. With 59 and 61 to his name on this track already, I’m sticking him into the lineup tomorrow. Players who didn’t get in red figures today are going to have to get low on Friday as the top 98 are currently even or better. The cut last year was 3-under-par 137. Moon Rising Two-time winner Sangmoon Bae is back on TOUR after serving required military service in his native Korea. His two year duty has ended and he’s back and looking to recapture the form that made him valuable to gamers from 2012-2015. His final full season, 2015, saw him tee it up 30 times, win once and add four additional top 10s. At 31 he’s hardly past it as his 66 on Thursday suggests. I’ll also point out this is his first round in the 60s in 11 tries this season so I’m not jumping in just yet. Spieth’s ‘Snowman’ Those who stuck him in the starting lineup won’t be happy with his snowman in paradise on the penultimate hole of the day. The good news is that quadruple bogey was surrounded by eight birdies, including one on the final hole of the day that will make dinner for Spieth, and gamers, taste a little bit better. Last week, Spieth got off to a slow start yet rallied in Round 2. The brave (or trailing) will throw him out there tomorrow but those near the top can patiently bide their time. Study Hall Jimmy Walker (74) has a fantastic recent record at this event but he’s also battling Lyme disease and is nowhere near 100 percent physically or mentally, the television coverage reported … Luke Donald was hospitalized with chest pains at The RSM Classic in the first round leading to his withdrawal. He opened with 72 in his first event back … Morgan Hoffmann (69) disclosed in early December that he has been diagnosed with muscular dystrophy. … Ryan Palmer (71) returned to action after shoulder surgery knocked him out after the Wyndham Championship. He has six starts on his major medical exemption to keep his status.

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After shooting an even-par 70 in Thursday’s first round, Woods looks to make the cut in Round 2 in windy conditions in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.

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