Justin Thomas clinched his 13th PGA Tour victory, winning the WGC FedEx St. Jude Invitational by a three-stroke margin and claiming the world number-one ranking in the process.
The 27-year-old American put up a near-flawless, five-under par 65 to win at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tennessee, with a four-way tie for second place between Americans Daniel Berger, Phil Mickelson and returning champion Brooks Koepka, as well as England's Tom Lewis.
Thomas and Koepka, who were 202 and 201 through 54 holes, respectively, went toe-to-toe in the final round, with Koepka draining a more than 39-foot putt for birdie on 17.
But Thomas, who locked in four birdies on the front nine, kept his nerve for the win, his first since the tour returned from a coronavirus hiatus.
The win cut short Jon Rahm's reign at the top of the rankings, with the 25-year-old Spaniard spending just two weeks as the world number one.
"It was a hard-fought day," said Thomas. "Besides that terrible wedge on 12, I played so well for 14 holes. I drove the ball just perfectly ... I realistically could have birdied my first 10 holes today and that is kind of bizarre to say."
Any hope Koepka had of claiming a last-minute victory evaporated on 18, as he drove his ball into the water for a double-bogey.
"I feel good. I feel like my game's right there, everything's solid. I hit a lot of good putts today, just didn't go in," said Koepka. "Obviously drained a big one on 17 and then you're down one. You've got to take an aggressive line on 18, so it is what it is."
An electrifying performance with five birdies on the front nine helped Lewis (66) to surge up the leaderboard in early play on Sunday, after he carded nine-under par 61 on Saturday, but a pair of bogeys on 13 and 17 had him settling for second.
Brendon Todd, the leader heading into Sunday, carded a disastrous five-over par 75, losing his edge and shooting three straight bogeys on 13 through 15.
Rickie Fowler started the day in contention for the win but finished the final round with a disappointing three-over par 73, thwarting his attempt to pick up his first PGA Tour victory since last year's Waste Management Phoenix Open.
Meanwhile, Richy Werenski made three birdies and an eagle in his final seven holes to surge past Troy Merritt and claim his maiden PGA Tour victory at the Barracuda Championship.
Werenski began the day seven points behind third-round leader Merritt but tallied 13 in the final round to notch a winning score of 39 points at the event played under the modified Stableford format.
The format awards eight points for an albatross, five for eagle, two for birdie, zero for par, and subtracts a point for bogey and three for double-bogeys or worse.
Werenski, 28, eagled the par-four 16th hole to move to within a point of fellow American Merritt before sinking a long birdie putt on the final hole.
Merritt had a chance to seal the victory but his birdie putt came up just short and he finished on 38 points, having squandered a final-round lead at the Barracuda for the second consecutive year.
"I feel like I've been playing well for the last couple months. But to get a win, that's huge," said Werenski, whose victory ensures a spot in next week's PGA Championship.
"I've got a couple seconds and everything, so this just helps my confidence a lot. Now I know I'm good enough."
Fabian Gomez and Matthias Schwab finished in a tie for third at 37 points.
- Reuters
Justin Thomas back at number one after winning in Memphis
Image: Sam Greenwood/Getty Images
Justin Thomas clinched his 13th PGA Tour victory, winning the WGC FedEx St. Jude Invitational by a three-stroke margin and claiming the world number-one ranking in the process.
The 27-year-old American put up a near-flawless, five-under par 65 to win at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tennessee, with a four-way tie for second place between Americans Daniel Berger, Phil Mickelson and returning champion Brooks Koepka, as well as England's Tom Lewis.
Thomas and Koepka, who were 202 and 201 through 54 holes, respectively, went toe-to-toe in the final round, with Koepka draining a more than 39-foot putt for birdie on 17.
But Thomas, who locked in four birdies on the front nine, kept his nerve for the win, his first since the tour returned from a coronavirus hiatus.
The win cut short Jon Rahm's reign at the top of the rankings, with the 25-year-old Spaniard spending just two weeks as the world number one.
"It was a hard-fought day," said Thomas. "Besides that terrible wedge on 12, I played so well for 14 holes. I drove the ball just perfectly ... I realistically could have birdied my first 10 holes today and that is kind of bizarre to say."
Any hope Koepka had of claiming a last-minute victory evaporated on 18, as he drove his ball into the water for a double-bogey.
"I feel good. I feel like my game's right there, everything's solid. I hit a lot of good putts today, just didn't go in," said Koepka. "Obviously drained a big one on 17 and then you're down one. You've got to take an aggressive line on 18, so it is what it is."
An electrifying performance with five birdies on the front nine helped Lewis (66) to surge up the leaderboard in early play on Sunday, after he carded nine-under par 61 on Saturday, but a pair of bogeys on 13 and 17 had him settling for second.
Brendon Todd, the leader heading into Sunday, carded a disastrous five-over par 75, losing his edge and shooting three straight bogeys on 13 through 15.
Rickie Fowler started the day in contention for the win but finished the final round with a disappointing three-over par 73, thwarting his attempt to pick up his first PGA Tour victory since last year's Waste Management Phoenix Open.
Meanwhile, Richy Werenski made three birdies and an eagle in his final seven holes to surge past Troy Merritt and claim his maiden PGA Tour victory at the Barracuda Championship.
Werenski began the day seven points behind third-round leader Merritt but tallied 13 in the final round to notch a winning score of 39 points at the event played under the modified Stableford format.
The format awards eight points for an albatross, five for eagle, two for birdie, zero for par, and subtracts a point for bogey and three for double-bogeys or worse.
Werenski, 28, eagled the par-four 16th hole to move to within a point of fellow American Merritt before sinking a long birdie putt on the final hole.
Merritt had a chance to seal the victory but his birdie putt came up just short and he finished on 38 points, having squandered a final-round lead at the Barracuda for the second consecutive year.
"I feel like I've been playing well for the last couple months. But to get a win, that's huge," said Werenski, whose victory ensures a spot in next week's PGA Championship.
"I've got a couple seconds and everything, so this just helps my confidence a lot. Now I know I'm good enough."
Fabian Gomez and Matthias Schwab finished in a tie for third at 37 points.
- Reuters
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