“Sometimes a par is tough”, Walker said. “I seemed to make a big key putt, long putt, every day this week”. “Boy I made it a little more hard than I would have like but it was awesome to make the last putt”.
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“I feel I’m progressing pretty nicely”, said Grace, a seven-times victor on the European Tour who clinched his first PGA Tour victory at the Heritage in SC in April. “Then to hit a wood up on the green like that and nearly make a putt, that was pretty wonderful”.
Newly-crowned victor of the US PGA Championship Jimmy Walker has admitted that the final day was a “battle”. The 37-year-old from Oklahoma took the Wanamaker Trophy and the top prize of $1.8 million (1.6 million euros) from a $10 million purse. I am so happy for Jimmy, because after all those wins, I think five of them on PGA, he had it in him for a Major and how he won it!
The rains, thunderstorms and a sketchy decision by PGA of America not to move up starting times, go to threesomes or start players on the first and 10th tees on Saturday had threatened to extend the tournament to Monday and, ouch, maybe Tuesday. Oh yeah, on Friday they put the cup on No. 10 in the wrong place.
The PGA Championship he won a year ago at Whistling Straits helped alleviate a lot of the angst. “We just felt for the fair play of a major championship we needed to play preferred lies in the final round”. It was Day, the defending champion and world’s No. 1 player, down to his last chance and delivering with a 2-iron that landed in front of the pin and stopped 15 feet away for eagle. Groups kept their third-round pairings for the last round in another time-saving bid.
Walker carded a closing 67 at Baltusrol to finish 14 under par, one shot ahead of Day after the world number one stunningly eagled the final hole to pile on the pressure.
Day was unable to pick up any further shots before hitting a superb approach to within 15 feet of the hole on the 18th, prompting a roar from the crowd which forced Walker to back off his birdie putt on 17 before crucially holing from eight feet for a three-shot lead. Then Walker responded with a birdie of his own from 30 feet at the 11th to reach 13 under, moving two clear of Day with Stenson three adrift.
The American, a five-time PGA Tour victor, holed out from a greenside bunker to birdie the 10th and rolled in a 30-footer for birdie at 11 to lead by two.
“It’s surreal. I mean, it really is”, he said after shooting 2-under-par 68 in the morning and 67 in the afternoon of the rain-delayed championship.
“‘Sometimes, things just don’t come easy”, Walker said hoisting the PGA Wannamaker Trophy.
Summerhays had five birdies over the last seven holes for a 66, giving him third place alone and a tee time at Augusta National next April for the first time. So, we have a brand new set of Major stars.
“I think it shows that everybody out here playing is really good and everybody’s got a chance to win”, Walker added.
Day, who was among the first to congratulate Walker on the 18th green, said: “I tried to give it a good run”. But I can’t be disappointed. Play in the fourth round began at 8:40 a.m. – when second-round co-leaders Jimmy Walker and Robert Streb were playing their sixth hole of the third round. It was no easy shot, and he had to play it safe by pitching his wedge shot about twenty feet past the hole.
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Only three other players over the last decade won their first major by leading (including ties) from start to finish – Jordan Spieth at the 2015 Masters, Rory McIlroy at the 2011 U.S. Open and Trevor Immelman at the 2008 Masters. “I didn’t have my best game today and I didn’t make a putt all day”.
