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He had to wait 80 minutes … or 3,262 days, depending on the perspective. Either way, Paul Casey is once again a winner on the PGA TOUR. Casey, playing nine groups ahead of the last twosome in Sunday’s final round of the Valspar Championship, blistered a tough Innisbrook course for a 6-under 65. The Englishman then had to wait out the finishers, all the while thinking his 10 under total would not hold up.  He signed his scorecard, signed some autographs, did a quick interview and then retreated to the locker room to watch his chasers come in. It was not a fun experience. “Awful,â€� he said, adding later. “Rubbish. Can’t stand it.â€� The biggest threats ended up being Patrick Reed and Tiger Woods. Reed came to 18 needing a birdie to win outright. Instead, his tricky putt from 45 feet turned into disaster and he suffered a bogey. Meanwhile, Woods drained a 43-foot, 8-inch putt at the 17th hole to climb within one stroke. He also faced a difficult birdie putt, this one from just inside 39 feet. Knowing Tiger’s flair for the dramatics, Casey gave it a “50-50â€� chance to go in. But it came up short. “I dodged a bullet,â€� Casey said. He was overdue for it. Prior to Sunday, Casey’s only TOUR win was the 2009 Houston Open. Since then, he’s won five times, four of those on the European Tour. He’s also battled through a variety of injuries that dropped him outside the world’s top 100. But he’s found consistency (he leads the TOUR in consecutive made cuts with 27 straight), made some noise in last year’s FedExCup Playoffs (three top-5 finishes) and finally peaked this week against the best field in Valspar history. “Probably not the most significant win of my career, but it’s certainly one of the most satisfying ones,â€� Casey said. “The quality of golf that I played. I know I made some errors on the round yesterday, I hit it in the water twice but as a whole I would say it’s one of the cleanest weeks I’ve ever had from kind of a golf course management point of view. … “Houston was obviously great fun. My eyes are much more open right now. I’ve taken a lot in. Your last win is always your best one because it’s the freshest.â€� Winning a TOUR event with Woods in contention was also satisfying for Casey. A week ago, Phil Mickelson won at age 47, and with the 42-year-old Woods in the mix, it seemed like he might extend the streak on Sunday. Instead, it was the 40-year-old Casey who did the trick. “I’m sure he was disappointed he didn’t get the victory,â€� Casey said. “I actually thought he was going to win today before the round started. I thought it was just teed up beautifully for him. “I said a couple times if I don’t win this thing, I actually want Tiger to win it. I’m glad it’s this way.â€�  NOTABLES Having set up a chance to force a playoff with his 43-foot putt on the 17th hole, Tiger Woods opted for 2-iron off the tee at the par-4 18th. His drive went 258 yards, leaving him with 185 yards to the pin. No player in the field had a longer approach shot on that hole Sunday. Tiger’s approach finished 39 feet from the pin, and his birdie attempt came up short. Asked why he didn’t use 3-wood off the tee, Woods explained, “I bring the right part of that fairway where it cuts in a little bit with 3-wood into play and on top of that the wind is off the left. If I’m going to squeeze it in I want to cut it. I didn’t feel comfortable with that. If anything, that 2-iron I could have hit it flatter and hotter but, hey, I’m in the fairway, I got a shot at this thing. Unfortunately, I didn’t hit it close enough.â€� You may think Patrick Reed lost his chance at a playoff when he bogeyed the final hole Sunday after his birdie putt rolled back to his feet after failing to clear the top ledge (his ensuing chip to save par came up just short). But from Reed’s perspective, the key misses were two 3-foot birdie chances on Saturday that he failed to convert. “Just too many mistakes out there,â€� Reed said. “I felt like I played solid today. I really didn’t feel like I did anything wrong on the last when I walked off with a 5.â€� Sergio Garcia’s 6-under 65 tied for the low round of the week, but he thinks it could’ve been better. “Could have been a really, really special round,â€� Garcia said. “You know, I probably wasted at least three shots on the front-9 with a 3-putt and a couple short misses for birdies.â€� The big Sunday move, though, left him solo fourth. That’s his best PGA TOUR result in his 12 starts since winning the Masters last year. Brandt Snedeker entered the third round just one shot off the lead and paired with Tiger Woods. But it was a day Sneds will quickly want to forget. His 7-over 78 – which included seven bogeys and one double — dropped him into a tie for 31st. Snedeker’s only suffered one other final round with a higher score – a 79 at the 2014 Waste Management Phoenix Open. Third-round leader Corey Conners also suffered a cruel day, a 6-over 77 that left him tied for 16th. Conners opened with a bogey and never got untracked, failing to produce a birdie the entire round after making 15 the first three days. Nevertheless, the Canadian rookie called the week a “great experienceâ€� after leading each of the first three days. “Little disappointed with the outcome today,â€� he said, “but, yeah, tried to battle hard out there and just wasn’t meant to be.â€� Jim Furyk shot a 5-under 66 to move into solo seventh. It’s his first top-10 finish since a T-6 at The RSM Classic in November of 2016. … Steve Stricker followed up his first win on PGA TOUR Champions last week with a solid T-12 after shooting a 2-under 69, his best round of the week … Branden Grace’s T-8 was his best finish on American soil since the 2016 PGA Championship at Baltusrol. QUOTABLES I’m sure I’ll find a photo somewhere with my name above his.I’m not touching a club tomorrow. I just didn’t hit it hard enough, obviously. Absolutely killed it and the ball rolled back down to where it was. Superlatives Lowest round – The 6-under 65s by winner Paul Casey and Sergio Garcia not only were the lowest of the day but tied for lowest of the week. Longest drive – Luke List’s 374-yard drive on the 10th hole. It reached the tree line and left him just 85 yards to the pin. He ended up with par on the hole. Longest putt – Fabian Gomez’ birdie putt of 56 feet, 8 inches on the fifth hole. It was the first of five birdies on his round – unfortunately he started with three bogeys to shoot 2-under 69. Hardest hole – The 442-yard par-4 18th played to a stroke average of 4.22. The tough pin placement has made it one of the most difficult closing holes on any Sunday on TOUR. Easiest hole – The 529-yard par-5 1st played to a stroke average of 4.55. It was the only hole that contender Justin Rose birdied en route to his 1-over 72. SHOT OF THE DAY CALL OF THE DAY

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Neither a windy afternoon nor having his forearm his forearm hit a tree while making a shot on the 16th hole could keep Tiger Woods from shooting a 1-under-par 70 Thursday in the first round of the Valspar Championship.

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Alex Noren (+275 for a Top 20) … Golf fans in the United States can be spoiled by international talent, specifically among the contingent that pulls double duty on the DP WORLD Tour. For every household name from Europe, there are many more who have tried once and haven’t returned. It’s even more challenging without picking off a PGA TOUR victory at some point, but the Swede has cracked the code. Now in his fifth consecutive season on this circuit, he’s all but desisted from jetting to his home continent for playing opportunities. It’s in part due to drifting outside the top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking as the 2019-20 season began, but he’s also connected with consistently strong form. In a phrase, less is more. The 39-year-old now is creeping up on the top 50 once more (at 56th) thanks most recently five top 20s in his last 10 starts. He’s also cashed twice in three tries at Muirfield Village with a personal-best T13 last year. Lanto Griffin (+500 for a Top 20) … When you associate his surname to these parts, he’s not the Griffin who rushes to mind. In fact, he’d have to prevail probably in at least three consecutive editions of the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday to begin to share even a fraction of a breath with the default reference to Archie Griffin. The former running back at Ohio State remains the only two-time winner of the Heisman Trophy (1974, 1975). But hey, Lanto didn’t pick that fight, and he’d be elated with even one title at Muirfield Village where he’s making his third straight appearance. He’s gathered momentum of late with a four-bagger that was sparked by a T15 in Mexico and a T6 in the testing conditions at TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm. His skill set of improved play closer to the cup is in direct correlation to this week’s challenge. Pat Perez (+400 for a Top 20) … At 104th in the FedExCup, the 46-year-old is poised to qualify for the Playoffs for the 14th time in 15 opportunities. The only time he’s missed is when he sat out the last two-thirds of the 2015-16 season to recover from surgery on his left shoulder. He set up his latest chance with consecutive top 10s on the West Coast Swing where he’s always done damage, but he’s missed only two of 10 cuts since. Now he’s fresh off a stretch-best T12 at Colonial where he led the field in total distance of putts converted. Since 2008, he’s 10-for-10 with four top 25s at Muirfield Village. Stretching for a top 20 now is aggressive, so consider a complementary consideration for a top 40. C.T. Pan (+333 for a Top 20) … Although it can stretch beyond 7,500 yards, Muirfield Village is equal opportunity for all performers. One does not need to send it off the tee to contend, or even prevail, but the 30-year-old holds his own with the driver despite ranging to just 5’6”. He hasn’t sniffed the leaderboard in three prior appearances, but he hasn’t slammed his trunk – sorry, it’s 2022 – depressed the button on the key fob to lower the liftgate, either. Now, he’d have his hands full with the monster pair of par 4s to close out a final round for victory, but reduce your expectation for a top 40, anyway. Since finishing ninth at Riviera three months ago, he’s 8-for-9 with four top 40s and three others for which he was exactly one shot too many to finish inside that bubble. Danny Willett (+650 for a Top 20) … His membership exemption for winning the 2016 Masters expires in just two months, and he’s currently 155th in the FedExCup, so we’re going to learn, as will he, what the 34-year-old Englishman is made of with the clock ticking. Muirfield Village is positioned to help as he’s perfect in three trips with a scoring average of exactly 72 (that includes an 82 among the 12 rounds). He’s not quite simmering upon arrival but he’s cashed in eight of his last 10 starts worldwide, including a T12 at the Masters and a T16 at the British Masters that he hosted four weeks ago. Odds were sourced on Tuesday, May 31, 2022. For live odds, visit BetMGM.

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