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Robert Streb was in control at The RSM Classic. Then he wasn't. Then he was again. The Strebber became the first player to be a dual winner of the tournament with a playoff win - over another former champion - and a former World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play champion no less in Kevin Kisner. Here are five stories you may have missed from The RSM Classic. 1. Perseverance pays off When Robert Streb won his first PGA TOUR event at the 2014-15 RSM Classic he figured it was the start of a very successful career. He'd proven he could win and now he'd forge ahead. Indeed he had a huge season back then. But that season turned out to be an anomaly in the end. He had more top-10s in the 2014-15 season (nine) than he did in the next five seasons combined (eight). He finished outside the top 125 in the FedExCup from 2018 to 2020. Despite the lack of form, his week at Sea Island was pretty darn impressive. He opened with a career low 65-63 to lead and by the 54-hole mark had a three shot buffer at the top. An incredible bogey-free run of 55 holes was only broken on Sunday at the par-4 13th, which of course was the opening Kevin Kisner was waiting for. After all the effort, a three-putt on the par-5 15th saw him a shot behind the man who won at RSM when Streb defended his title. As everyone turned to thinking Kisner was marching to victory Streb stepped up in an unexpected way. He missed a birdie try at the 16th but then on the 192-yard par-3 17th hit a brilliant shot and converted one of just nine birdies at the hole all day to square things up. Despite a missed chance to win it all on the 72nd hole and then surviving the first hole of sudden death with a scrambling par, Streb went within a whisker of holing out an eagle from the fairway. The tap in birdie would be enough to win. "It’s really nice to say I’ve got more than one (win)," he said. "Winning more than once ... validates what ability you have. It was just kind of unexpected and super nice to get (this win)." Streb rocketed to eighth in the FedExCup with the triumph. Read more about it here. 2. Emotional effort from Villegas For a little while there was that feeling in the air. The feeling that the fairytale win was indeed going to come true. But while Camilo Villegas might not have won the trophy at Sea Island he continues to win over the hearts and minds of fans around the world. Not far removed from losing his daughter to a battle with cancer Villegas continues to honor her legacy the best way he knows how... by bringing awareness to the disease that claimed little Mia and other angels like her. Four birdies on the front nine Sunday gave him a real chance to win but in the end Villegas would settle for a T6 finish. In the grand scheme of things the result was not important. His message though, is ultra-important. Grab some tissues and have a read. 3. Kisner gets groove back. When Kevin Kisner missed the cut at the Masters on Saturday morning - he had to finish up his second round after earlier rain delays - he made a call to nearby Palmetto Golf Club in Aiken where he's spent countless hours honing his game from a young age. He heard there was a skins game on and he wanted in. Word was he wanted to feel what it was like to make birdies again. The gem of a course is a little short for the modern day TOUR star but with a fun routing and incredible green complexes it is a true test for most. The return to his roots clearly worked as Kisner went within inches of getting his second RSM Classic title. A 63 on Sunday was enough to force extra holes and his birdie try on the first extra hole was very close to falling. Kisner now has four top-4 finishes in his last 13 starts on TOUR. A fourth TOUR win can't be too far away. 4. Niemann plays for greater cause. A week ago Joaquin Niemann was bummed a COVID-19 positive test cost him a spot at the Masters. He could care less about that right now. The young star from Chile returned at The RSM Classic with more important things on his mind - namely the terrible plight facing his one-month old cousin. Rafita Calderon, whose father, Felipe, is the cousin of Niemann's mother, was born on Oct. 21 in Talcahuano, Chile and was recently diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy, which essentially is a breakdown of the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. The infant needs a costly infusion to survive so Niemann pledged the entirety of this week's winnings — as well as an additional $5,000 for every birdie and $10,000 for every eagle — towards to cause. Some T44's are worth more than others. Niemann earned $136,450 toward the cause, but the reality is the family will need more than $2 million in total. The International Presidents Cup star will continue to help the fight in every way he can. Read more here. 5. Conners feels the Love The RSM Classic leaderboard wasn't the only one worth watching on Sunday at Sea Island. The widely popular annual Birdies Fore Love campaign was also coming to a close and it was Canadian Corey Conners who came up trumps. The charitable endeavor tracks birdies made across the fall portion of a PGA TOUR season with the player who provides the most given $300,000 to give to a charity of their choice. Conners made a late blitz, finishing tied for 10th at Sea Island, but outlasting Sepp Straka and Sungjae Im on the Birdies Fore Love tally. Conners and his wife, Malory, recently started a foundation to help provide children with educational and athletic opportunities they couldn't otherwise afford. "It’s pretty amazing. I saw my name on the (RSM Birdies Fore Love) leaderboard at the start of the week and I was trying to make as many birdies as I could and trying to get myself up to the top. Pretty humbled to have gotten it done," Conners said. "The generosity of RSM for sponsoring this event and sponsoring a donation, is pretty remarkable. This has been a really tough year for a lot of people and for them to step up like this, I’m going to be able to impact a lot of lives with the $300,000, so it's pretty amazing." Read more here.
When golfers fall asleep imagining how they’d play this course or that, they’re almost never dreaming about Winged Foot. ”The viewers at home are going to see some pretty bizarre stuff and probably a lot of putts and chips that make us look pretty bad,” Justin Thomas said. The USGA selects the venues for the national championships and sets them up, sometimes diabolically, happy to let the game’s three other major championships and nearly every week out on tour offer what amounts to a skeet-shoot.
GUYANCOURT, France – The U.S. team room at the Renaissance hotel near the Atlanta airport was buzzing Sunday night while anticipating the arrival of its latest winner. Finally, the moment came. “A giant roar when Steve Stricker walked in the room after his victory last night,â€� captain Jim Furyk said Monday, doing his best to suppress a smile. No offense to Stricker, whose wire-to-wire win at the inaugural Sanford International was his third in just seven starts on the current PGA TOUR Champions season. A most impressive performance, to be sure, but even vice-captain Stricker would admit the biggest buzz for the Americans on Sunday was generated by Tiger Woods, who ended his five-year drought on the PGA TOUR by claiming the TOUR Championship. Several of the U.S. players had stayed at East Lake late Sunday to congratulate Woods. Then they gathered at the hotel for a team dinner before jumping on a plane that landed in France at approximately 12:45 p.m. locally Monday afternoon. Their goal now is to end a drought that’s five times longer than Tiger’s – winning the Ryder Cup on foreign soil. It’s been 25 years since the U.S. has defeated Europe on the road, but Furyk couldn’t have asked for a better momentum boost than Woods winning after being uncertain about his golfing future just a year ago. To have Stricker also bring another trophy to the team room was a big bonus. “Nice to have those two guys play so well, and you know, start us off pretty well this week,â€� Furyk said Monday from Le Golf National, site of this week’s event. Of course, now the question becomes: Just how much of an impact will it make on this week’s outcome? European Captain Thomas Bjorn, hoping to avoid any potential bulletin board material, did not want to be dismissive of Tiger’s accomplishment, but he also sought to emphasize that this is a different week, with a completely different set of factors. “I spent 25 years playing professional golf with Tiger Woods on the scene, and anytime he does anything great, that’s a story and that’s where we want to see him,â€� said Bjorn, who can count on having FedExCup champion Justin Rose on his side. “We want to see him at the top of the game. He does so much for the game of golf. Watching that last night, I thought it was brilliant to watch. It was great for the greater aspect of the game. “Coming into this week, these are 24 of the best players in the world and this tournament is what it is. … It has its history and it’s a great battle and it is 12 against 12, and that’s what we’re looking forward to.â€� Furyk agreed that individual success one week can only go so far at a team event the following week. He said Tiger – initially a vice-captain until Furyk made him a captain’s pick earlier this month — has already switched gears mentally. “He won yesterday as an individual, and I know how much that means to him and how important it was,â€� Furyk said, “but he’s flipped that page pretty quickly and is really excited to join his teammates and move forward in that process.â€� Of course, the excitement and adrenaline and rush of success can also be mentally exhausting to handle. Rose and Woods are each coming off highs Sunday night in East Lake, and now must turn around and refocus quickly. Meanwhile, four other Americans will try to shake off disappointment at the TOUR Championship – Brooks Koepka, Patrick Reed, Bubba Watson and Phil Mickelson were the bottom four names on the leaderboard after the final round. Furyk, however, is not worried about that foursome, which has combined to win 65 TOUR events, including 11 majors. “Of course, I think everyone would like to be in good form and feel good about their game,â€� he said, “but it’s a different golf course, different venue, totally different type of golf tournament coming into a match-play event, a team-oriented event and obviously with the big galleries. Just totally different atmosphere this week.â€� There’s also a matter of scheduling. With two sessions each day on Friday and Saturday, players will need to be well-rested for potentially having to play 36 holes in those first two days, followed by the intense Sunday Singles. Of the 12 Americans, 11 played last week at East Lake, with only Jordan Spieth sitting out after failing to qualify. Of the 12 Europeans, six played at East Lake and two more played the Portugal Masters on the European Tour. Four Europeans rested last week, and two of those – Ian Poulter and Alex Noren – were on the range early Monday afternoon. Plus, the U.S. team will need to get acquainted with Le Golf National; only half of the 12 players have ever seen it, compared to the European team, in which every member has played the course in a competitive environment. Le Golf National hosts the annual French Open on the European Tour. “The trick for us, not knowing the golf course quite as well, is getting that preparation in and learning the golf course,â€� Furyk said, “yet also trying to conserve some energy.â€� While the U.S. hope for a Tiger bounce to offset those concerns, the Europeans could also get a bounce if they can beat a surging Woods this week in the early sessions. Asked if Woods was to be feared this week, Bjorn responded: “We don’t fear anyone because we’ve played against them so many times before individually, but we respect our opponents and know what we’re up against. “That, I think, is the key to all this. We’ll go out and do what we can and play our game. What stands on the other side we know is one of the strongest American teams of all time, and we know we’ve got to play our best.â€� Tiger’s at his best – his best, at least, in the last five years. At some point this week, the Europeans will have to respond.
