With one hole left, the lead by two strokes, and the victory seemed to be right around the corner. However, the tee shot on the last hole almost ruined everything. Fortunately, the goddess of golf held his hand in extension and succeeded in winning two tours. Emiliano Griyo (30. Argentina), who won the Charles Schwab Challenge (total prize money of 8.7 million dollars) on the PGA Tour on the 29th (Korean time), is the main character.
In the final 4th round of the tournament held at Colonial CC (par 70, 7209 yards) in Fort Worth, Texas, USA that day, Griyo hit 2 under par 68 with 6 birdies, 2 bogeys and 1 double bogey. Griyo, who recorded a final total of 8 under par 272, won the championship after two overtimes with Adam Schenk (USA). It is a victory added after 7 years, 7 months and 10 days since his first win on the PGA Tour.
As a rookie, he was a blown player. After winning the Korn Ferry Tour Championship in October 2015 and earning a regular tour card, he immediately won the PGA Tour season opener, the Price.com Open, held two weeks later. He became the second player after 2013 Sony Open winner Russell Henry to win the first tournament he entered as an official tour member.
The opportunity to win the championship, which came after 7 years, seemed to come smoothly. In the final round of the day, Griyo caught 4 birdies in the first half alone. Putting, which was his weakness, shined on this day. At the start of this tournament, he was ranked 134th on the PGA Tour in putting, but jumped to second place in this event. He caught a 5m birdie putt on the 12th hole (par 4) and a 6m birdie putt on the 16th hole (par 3). He seemed to win smoothly, widening the gap to the second place group by two strokes.
The crisis came on the last hole. On the 18th hole (par 4), Griyo’s tee shot bent wide to the right and fell into the waterway. The ball went down endlessly along the water path. The ball, which followed the water for about five minutes, stopped after being caught on a leaf after it had flowed 50 yards further than the first landing point.
In the end, Griyo received a penalty and dropped the ball on the cart road, where the ball first fell, and continued the game. Perhaps because of the shaken mentality from the tee shot, the short game also became dull and ended with a double bogey. It was a game that seemed to have been won, but the match went into overtime as Schenk was allowed a tie.
Those who could not decide the game on the first hole of the extension played the second game on the 16th hole (par 3). This time, Griyo’s tee shot was slightly off. But it was a ‘nice miss’. The ball that hit the periphery of the green came down the slope and stuck to the side of the hole 1.4m away.
On the other hand, Schenk’s tee shot went off the green and landed in the rough. Schenck tried to turn the ball around with an elaborate chip shot, but the goddess of golf raised her hand. Griyo did not miss the 1.4m birdie putt and lifted the championship cup after a long wait.
Waiting for the 2nd win was difficult. Still, Griyo said, “Every moment was worth it.” “When the championship was confirmed, everything went through my head, including the feelings I had when I started playing golf, the practice time, and the efforts of my family,” he said. “Everything was precious and made me who I am today.”스포츠토토
An Byeong-hun, who was in the top 10 for three consecutive days in rounds 1 to 3, lost 4 strokes that day and finished the tournament tied for 21st place (1 under par 279 strokes). Kim Si-woo, who lost three strokes with two birdies and five birdies, finished tied for 29th with a final total of even par 280 strokes. Lee Kyung-hoon is tied for 57th with a 5-over par and 285 strokes.