FORT WORTH, Texas – Colonial Country Club players were greeted by the Wall of Champions as they stepped onto the first teeing ground. You’ll quickly recognize golf legends such as Sam Snead, Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, Arnold Palmer and Ben Hogan on the list of players who have mastered the 1936 Perry Maxwell design at least once in their professional career. their profession.
Sam Burns is the latest movie to have his name engraved on that wall – a custom 1979 Pontiac firebird and a $1.5 million paycheck also in hand – after returning from seven owls. to hit win the Charles Schwab Challenge 2022 in the playoff match of sudden death against world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler. It comes just a week after Justin Thomas used a similarly unlikely but successful formula to win the 2022 PGA Championship in the Southern Hills.
Burns, bottom 4 after three innings, played 85 minutes before Scheffler became a 54-hole lead. With 90 minutes before the final playoff then followed, DataGolf gave Burns less than a 10% chance of winning. But Burns’ starting position eventually turned into an advantage as he was able to hit a 5 under 65 while those taking part in the final tee time saw Colonial’s teeth in full action. with winds of up to 32 mph in their lap.
When Scheffler and Burns reached the green in the 18th round of par-4 for the first playoff hole, Burns still had more magic in his pocket despite that extended chill. Burns, shortly after making his approach, sank a 38-foot birdie putt from the bottom of the pitch while Scheffler equalized, giving Burns a fourth win at the tournament. PGA Tour in the last 28 starts.
“I was thinking how hard it would be, that if I go out and post a really good number, [anything] could happen,” Burns said. Scottie played unbelievable. I mean, it was just a really hard golf course with a lot of wind and crazy things happening, and luckily, I was able to sneak into a playoff and obviously hit that shot on the 18th. “.
In doing so, Burns denied Scheffler, who entered Sunday with a two-stroke lead, to a surprising fifth win of the season by June 1. Neither golfer has achieved it. that achievement since Tom Watson in 1980, although Scheffler appeared poised. to end that drought.
But the Charles Schwab Challenge was definitely it – a challenge – as the arid conditions created for the highest scoring event at the Colonial since Adam Scott won 9th in 2014. That wind dropped briefly on Friday to facilitate main, but low scoring. The laps were the highest for most of the tournament, with Mother Nature causing the most difficulty in the final two days. .
The numbers in red are few and far between for those entering Saturday in contention. Eight of the 10 players in the last five groups of the day shot higher scores in the third round. Only Scheffler was bottom in the group that Saturday after shining with a number of shots on and around the pitch, including a downhill 30-foot birdie at par-4 18.
“It’s tough when the wind blows that hard,” Scheffler said of the green lawns on Saturday. “As above [the 18th], I am going downhill but met the wind. And depending on the type of wind I get, it will move that ball around the green a lot. “
Scheffler proved somewhat prophetic to come on Sunday as the scoring conditions and trends from Saturday persisted, sometimes enough to create carnage near or at the top of the standings. Sunday marked the first time Scheffler played a round without a birdie in 2022, though not without a series of crucial pars to keep contention going despite 2 over 72.
Burns echoes Scheffler’s comments about the challenges of greens after winning.
“You see these guys miss these short shots… not that they’re worried,” Burns said. “It’s hard when the wind is blowing 30 mph. That’s moving those golf balls across the grass. That’s the hardest part – just because you’re lying on it for two shots and there’s [a 3-foot putt]it’s not just going up there and hitting it in. It will have your complete attention. “
Just ask Harold Varner III, who entered the 12th tee sharing the lead at 10 under. Varner hit three shots on that hole after hitting four shots within 16 feet. This was the first of four holes where Varner played two games or worse in the last seven as a post 45 sank him from contention to a T27 finish at par in the blink of an eye.
Varner is also not alone in seeing things go by so quickly. Rookie Riley Davis took a completely 11-under lead from six birdies in his first 11 holes only to return a hit with a bogey at par-3 13 before having an out-of-bounds tee on par. -4 14 led to a double rogue that left him well out of the lead. Davis saved 1 under 69 on a T4 shot, but it was a disappointing result.
It was then, Burns knew that sharing a meal with his family members at the Colonial club was the safest place he could be before he reached the practice area when the playoffs seemed imminent. take place. Burns barely needed that playoff for his win when Scheffler put in a six-foot par putt on the 72nd hole, anything but a gimme, to force the playoff.
“I can assure you I’m not jealous of them while they’re playing out there [after I finished]”Burns said.” That’s not it – [it] doesn’t feel like it’s blowing any less than any of us out there. It’s just one of those things that when you’re finally done, you’re ready to finish. But at the same time, [I] kind of thinking possible [I] maybe sneak into a playoff. [I] i thought [10 under] would have been a number but in the end it became [9 under]. ”
Burns made the most of that opportunity to become the latest winner at the longest running stop on the PGA Tour calendar. And with the trophy at Colonial only adding to the 25-year-old’s motivation and confidence as he heads into the summer months that include pro tournaments with the US Open at Brookline and The Open Championship in St. Andrew’s.
Colonial’s latest entry is one that often feels like a mainstay because of how many of the top names can’t stand the challenging conditions. And Burns, despite that, was able to stand up in the end.
“It’s like a major championship-style condition where you’re going to have to go through really tough times,” Burns said. “But the way we were able to put the ball in the right place and get around here in the under five today, I think [that] is a really good score. ”
