PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Cameron Smith made the longest week at The Gamers Championship well worth the wait.
In a dynamic conclusion to 5 days of unhealthy climate and prime drama, Smith one-putted 8 of his remaining 9 holes along with his natural stroke and delivered one of the crucial gutsiest pictures of his profession for the cushion he had to win.
Main through two at the par-3 seventeenth hollow, 135 yards to the outlet on an island inexperienced, Smith cut up the variation within the 12 toes that separated the flag from the water. The ball ended up 4 toes away and the Australian made his record-tying tenth birdie of the spherical.
Seems he wanted it. Smith punched out from the pine straw proper of the 18th fairway all of the method into the water. After a penalty drop, his 60-yard wedge spun subsequent to the outlet to a few toes for a bogey and a 6-under 66, giving him a one-shot victory over Anirban Lahiri of India.
Lahiri, who began the general spherical with a one-shot lead, birdied the seventeenth and wanted another to drive a playoff. He got here up in need of the fairway, and his pitch used to be beneath the cup all of the method. He closed with a 69.
Paul Casey shot 69 and used to be the sufferer of a terrible spoil at the sixteenth hollow when he used to be in place to edge nearer to the lead.
Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, B.C., shot 67 within the ultimate spherical and completed in a tie for 9th, six pictures off the lead. Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont., used to be any other shot again and tied for thirteenth. Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., tied for thirty sixth.
Smith, who completed at 13-under 275, gained for the second one time this 12 months, and the 5th time in his PGA Excursion profession, and collected $3.6 million from the $20 million handbag, the richest in golfing.
This used to be about greater than cash, greater than the three-year exemption he earned to the 4 majors and a five-year exemption at the PGA Excursion.
This used to be as a lot about circle of relatives. Smith, so unflappable within the worrying force that featured 26 holes on Monday, choked up when he mentioned his mom and sister, whom he had now not observed greater than two years as a result of shuttle restrictions Down Beneath right through the pandemic.
Smith makes his house down the street in Jacksonville Seashore, and he fortuitously went to the airport this week for a unique reunion.
They watched him seize the largest prize in golfing subsequent to the majors.
“It is actually cool to have them right here,” Smith mentioned.
“My primary precedence used to be to hang around with them. Golfing used to be 2d. It is great to peer them and great to get a win for them.”
Lahiri’s handiest giant mistake used to be a tee shot right into a palmetto bush at the par-3 8th, forcing him to take a drop close to the concession space that resulted in double bogey. It used to be the one shot he dropped all day, and his highest end at the PGA Excursion got here with a $2.18 million comfort prize.
Casey, in the meantime, used to be the sufferer of unhealthy success. He used to be two pictures in the back of and in the similar team as Smith when he seemed to have a large benefit at the par-5 sixteenth. Smith duck-hooked his tee shot into the pines. Casey drilled his force down the center. However the ball took one remaining roll within the rain-soaked fairway, proper into any other participant’s pitch mark.
As a substitute of a mid-iron into the par 5, he needed to punch it out brief. Then, he used to be inches clear of getting reduction from a sprinkler head close to the fairway and needed to scramble for par. Smith punched out to the green and paired the par.
They headed to the seventeenth, the place Smith’s 9-iron used to be bolder than he sought after.
“I might be mendacity if I did not push it slightly bit,” he mentioned.
Regardless of. He were given the birdie, were given the win and moved to No. 6 on the earth.
So concluded every week like no different at the TPC Sawgrass, the place such a lot rain early within the week supposed the primary spherical lasted 54 hours and 16 mins, completing on Saturday morning. The wind that adopted wreaked havoc on part the sector. The bone-chilling temperatures Sunday made it tricky on everybody. It used to be the primary Monday end since 2005 at The Gamers.
Smith made it memorable for such a lot of different causes.
Kevin Kisner birdied 3 of his remaining 4 holes for a 68 to complete by myself in fourth. Kisner is known for as soon as pronouncing twentieth position can pay beautiful excellent. So does fourth position on the excursion’s premier tournament. He earned $980,000.
Keegan Bradley used to be amongst 4 avid gamers who had a possibility over the past hour. He used to be one shot in the back of after a birdie at the sixteenth, handiest to three-putt the seventeenth from the entrance of the fairway to a again pin, after which took double bogey at the 18th when his punch shot from the bushes got here out sizzling and ended up within the water. He shot 68 and completed 5th.
