Aussie's implosion as world No.1 stuns

1 year ago 77

By Damien McCartney and AP

Min Woo Lee started the last circular of The Players conscionable 2 shots down person and eventual winner, satellite No.1 Scottie Scheffler.

But facing his biggest situation successful his abbreviated vocation - playing successful the last radical successful his Players debut - Lee buckled nether pressure, carding a final-round four-over 76 to descend from outright 2nd to seven-way necktie for sixth, 9 shots down Scheffler.

The 7 players successful the necktie for sixth besides included chap Aussie Cameron Davis, who besides slipped down the leaderboard aft carding a two-over last circular of 74.

Former champion Jason Day finished 2 shots further backmost successful a necktie for 19th.

After making birdie connected the first, Lee was tied for the pb erstwhile helium deed his archetypal velocity bump connected the par-4 fourth. He recovered heavy unsmooth with his tee shot, and aft laying up with his second, could lone ticker connected arsenic his 3rd changeable spun backmost into the creek protecting the green.

He walked disconnected with a triple-bogey seven.

He looked to beryllium steadying the vessel erstwhile helium got to the par-5 11th, but hooked his tee changeable heavy into the conifer needles that situation the famed TPC Sawgrass course.

It took him 3 shots to get out. He walked disconnected the greenish with treble bogey, his complaint each but done.

"It happened truly quick. It's 1 of those things wherever it's Sunday and you conscionable marque a mates atrocious decisions and it each benignant of falls down," helium said aft play.

"I tried to get it back, but I conscionable didn't person my attack crippled contiguous and that's thing I've got to enactment on. But, yeah, again, blessed with the week."

Lee did negociate 1 last circular item - a superb birdie connected the Island Green 17th.

Lee's playing partner, champion Scheffler ran disconnected 5 consecutive birdies successful the mediate of his round, built a six-shot pb and near each the play to everyone other connected his mode to a 3-under 69 to triumph the richest prize connected the PGA Tour by 5 shots.

The triumph was worthy astir $7 cardinal and sent Scheffler backmost to the apical of the satellite rankings for the 2nd clip this year. He present has six victories successful his past 27 starts connected the PGA Tour, including the 4 wins helium had past twelvemonth culminated by his Masters title.

When helium poured successful a six metre par putt connected the last hole, Scheffler had the largest borderline of triumph successful The Players since Stephen Ames won by six successful 2006.

"I got blistery successful the mediate of the circular and tried to enactment things distant arsenic rapidly arsenic I can," Scheffler said. "Gosh, it's fun."

Earlier successful the day, Tyrrell Hatton birdied his past 5 holes for a 65, finishing erstwhile Scheffler was making the turn. Viktor Hovland (68) and Tom Hoge (70) were 7 shots down successful a necktie for third, each making astir $2.25 cardinal from the astir $38 cardinal purse.

Scheffler, who finished astatine 17-under 271, became lone the 3rd subordinate to triumph astatine the TPC Sawgrass with each 4 rounds successful the 60s.

His final-round birdie-fest started erstwhile Scheffler chipped successful from the collar of a bunker connected the par-3 eighth, and helium closed retired the beforehand 9 with an assertive play connected the par-5 ninth that acceptable up a chip-and-a-putt birdie.

By present the upwind was gusting adjacent to 50km/h, which lone adds to the occupation connected this course. Scheffler stayed aggressive, though, holing a 5.5m birdie connected the 10th, two-putting from much than 20m connected the par-5 11th and taking connected the reachable par-4 12th with a 3-wood to pin precocious conscionable close of the green. That acceptable up his 5th consecutive birdie, and a six-shot lead.

The biggest meltdown belonged to PGA Tour rookie Taylor Montgomery, who was tied for 4th until a bogey connected the 15th, a treble bogey connected the 16th (without hitting successful the water) and past 2 balls successful the h2o connected the 17th - from the tee and past a spot that rolled disconnected the beforehand of the land - for a quintuple-bogey seven.

He dropped 40 spots connected the leaderboard, and astatine No.55 successful the world, that kept him from cracking the apical 50 successful the rankings and apt securing a spot successful the Masters.

This was Scheffler's sixth triumph successful the past 13 months, each of them against immoderate of the strongest fields successful golf.

The $7 cardinal triumph has pushed his play full to implicit $17 million, and the archetypal large is inactive a period away. He has won immoderate $36 cardinal successful the past 2 seasons.

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