Billy Horschel secured his place at next month’s PGA Championship with victory at the Corales Puntacana Championship.
The 37-year-old made four consecutive birdies on the front nine to get into the mix, started to stand out with an eagle at the par-five 12th hole and closed with a nine-under 63 for a two-shot victory in The Republic Dominican.
Horschel, who started the final round three shots behind, nearly sealed his triumph with an 18-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole.
“This game of golf is so fickle,” Horschel said. “You can invest a lot in it and not get everything you want out of it.
“I knew…I had the ability, I had the talent. I had to continue to believe that the good things were going to come to the forefront.”
Wesley Bryan, trying to go wire to wire, had no bogey with four birdies and still only one shot behind at the end of the round. But just after Horschel made his final birdie, Bryan missed a par putt from just outside two feet and fell three behind.
Bryan birdied the 18th for a 68 to finish second, which will advance him to the AT&T Byron Nelson in two weeks. He was playing on a sponsor exemption. Kevin Tway shot 69 and finished third.
Horschel finished at 23 and earned $720,000, winning for the eighth time on the PGA Tour and the first time in nearly two years. In addition to earning him a spot at the PGA Championship, he will likely play in the upcoming $20 million marquee event at the Wells Fargo Championship.
These are the tournaments that Horschel, a former FedEx Cup champion, used to play in. Opposite field events are seen as a chance for young players to earn their first victory. In Horschel’s case, regaining some confidence was crucial.
He delivered one of his best closing rounds when he needed to – the four straight birdies from the par-three second hole, a 31 on the front nine, the eagle on hole 12 to take control and no bogeys during the last 30 holes of the tournament.
Nearly a year ago at Memorial, Horschel, the defending champion at Muirfield Village, shot 84 and was nearly in tears as he talked about his confidence plummeting. He missed the FedEx Cup playoffs for the first time since 2012.
He had shown signs this year with two top 10 finishes, and now has a victory to validate. In addition to competing in the PGA Championship at Valhalla, he is guaranteed to start next year at Kapalua in The Sentry.
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