Planet Golf — 01 April 2022 by GW staff and news services
Spaun ‘Masters’ Valero field for huge win

SAN ANTONIO — A year ago, J.J. Spaun missed cut after cut. He wondered how much longer he could last.

His game was in a dark place. He was on his way to losing his PGA TOUR card. He was lost.

But then he found something.

The 31-year-old Spaun made a slight adjustment to his putting grip last week and won the Valero Texas Open on Sunday, his first in 147 TOUR starts.

Spaun started the final round with a share of the lead at 10 under. He lost it briefly, opening Sunday with a double bogey. He recovered with birdies at the sixth and eighth holes. He holed a greenside lob shot for another at the ninth. It was at precisely that moment that Spaun wondered if his good play could last long enough to let him win.

“Good things are happening,” he thought.

Spaun cruised through the back nine with two birdies and seven pars. By that time, he couldn’t be caught.

Spaun had made four other starts at the Valero Texas Open. He tied for 26th in 2018 and 49th in 2017. He missed the cuts in 2020 and 2021.

He shot 5-under 67 in the first round this year and was on his way. By Sunday, Spaun had committed to caution on a hard golf course in shifting winds.

“This course is a good course for being patient, hitting fairways and hitting greens,” he said.

He did everything else well when he needed to. Spaun ranked fifth for the week in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green, 10th in Off-the-Tee, 13th in Around-the-Green and 17th in Putting.

The San Diego State alum also collected 500 FedExCup points, moving to 10th in the FedExCup standings.

His final-round 69 put him at 13 under, two strokes clear of Matt Jones and Matt Kuchar. It also earned him a spot in his first Masters Tournament.

Spaun said he allowed himself to think Saturday night about the Masters. He entertained the possibility – and let it go.

“There was still so much to be done,” he said.

That work got hard early. Spaun’s opening double bogey dropped him to 8 under, with Beau Hossler, Dylan Frittelli and Brandt Snedeker leading.

Those players and many others encountered their own problems. Spaun was done with his.

He made six birdies and no bogeys through the rest of the final round. He made every crucial putt on the back nine.

Spaun became the first player to endure a double bogey on the first hole and proceed to win on TOUR since Tiger Woods at the 2008 U.S. Open.

“I’d rather double the first hole than the last one,” Spaun said.

Four hours later, he signed an otherwise clean scorecard and waited to see if Hossler would make albatross on the 72nd hole to tie him.

Hossler didn’t. On a day of many firsts, Spaun held a PGA TOUR trophy for the first time. He knew exactly how long he could last.

“It’s a great feeling to be in the winner’s circle, and now it’s like a game changer,” he said. “I don’t know. It’s just perseverance. Just trying to push through and stay strong.”

SAN ANTONIO — Ryan Palmer shot a bogey-free round of 6-under 66 at the Valero Texas Open to lead by two shots over Kevin Chappell, Dylan Frittelli and Matt Kuchar after Friday’s second round.

Palmer, at 10-under, surged into the lead with consecutive birdies midway through the back nine.

Chappell, the 2017 tournament winner, had the day’s low round of 65. Frittelli also got away with no bogeys during his 66, and Kuchar shot 69 with four-straight birdies on the back.

Palmer’s last TOUR win came in 2019. He took the lead with a 5-foot birdie putt at the par-5 14th. At 15 he converted another birdie putt inside 10 feet.

“It’s a golf course, if you get it offline, you’re going to struggle,” Palmer said. “I was able to keep the ball in front of me. When I’ve missed fairways, I’ve gotten fortunate breaks, I think. So the weekend, it’s a matter of just avoiding those big misses.”

Hideki Matsuyama withdrew after nine holes Friday with a sore neck, leaving early ahead of his Masters title defense next week.

Defending champion Jordan Spieth was making a move, getting to 4-under for his round after a short birdie putt on his 14th hole. He was in good shape for par at the next after chipping to three feet away— where he three-putted. The double-bogey put him on the projected cut line, ultimately making the weekend by two shots at 2-under.

It wasn’t as good for some other notable names. Bryson DeChambeau triple bogeyed the first hole and missed the cut. Rory McIlroy failed to break par in his two rounds and missed the cut.

J.J. Spaun is in a group of players three shots back of Palmer. He led during the morning at 10-under when he dropped an 18-foot birdie at his 14th hole. He finished with three bogeys.

“I’m still in a good position — there’s a lot of golf left,” Spaun said. “It got kind of tough with the finish, and two bad swings made me make a couple bogeys. Still happy to have a shot.”

Those joining Spaun at 7-under include U.S. Open champions Lucas Glover (66) and Gary Woodland (67), Charles Howell III (67) and Brendon Todd (69).

Kuchar bogeyed three of four holes in the middle of his round. Starting at the 14th, Kuchar made four-straight birdie putts of 10 feet or more. He said there was nothing special about the run.

“I don’t think so — they fall where they fall and you never know,” he said. “You try to stay as positive as you can thinking they’ll fall at some point. You never know in a round of golf, and it’s nice that they fell at some point today.”

Chappell’s only TOUR win came here five years ago. His 65 had no bogeys on the card. He eagled his 11th hole and finished with two birdies, a 17-footer on the finishing hole.

“I just feel at ease around this place,” Chappell said. “My soul and this golf course get along. I really enjoy being here. I’m excited about where my game is because I’ve don’t think I played great yet. It’s not like the ball is coming out of the middle of the clubface every time and flying where I’m looking, but I’ve been able to scramble and get the ball in the hole.”

FIRST ROUND

SAN ANTONIO — Russell Knox recorded four straight birdies on the back nine and fired a 7-under 65 on Thursday for a one-shot lead after the opening round of the Valero Texas Open.

Knox closed out his round with a seven-foot putt to save par at the par-5 18th at TPC San Antonio, and was one shot ahead of Rasmus Hojgaard.

Hojgaard fired a 66 despite a double bogey on his final hole. Matt Kuchar is another stroke back after an opening 5-under 67 and is among a group that includes Denny McCarthy, Aaron Rei and J.J. Spaun.

Defending champion Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy finished at even-par 72. They were outside the top 60 after one round and could flirt with the cut line on Friday.

Bryson DeChambeau had a 1-over 73. After holing a bunker shot for eagle on his 11th hole and following with a birdie on the next, he made bogey on four of his last six holes.

Knox, a 32-year-old Scotsman with two career PGA TOUR wins, started his birdie streak at No. 12. All of his birdie putts were inside 10 feet. At the 15th, he was about 20 feet away from a back pin position following his approach and chipped in from the fringe. It was his second chip-in in the round.

“That was one of those kind of bonus birdies that you need when you’re going to have a good day,” Knox said. “Obviously thrilled with the round. It’s been more of the way I want to play.”

Hogjaard, a 21-year-old from Denmark and two-rime winner on the DP World Tour, had his sights on the first-round lead heading to his closing hole. But, his drive sailed well left of the fairway. It took him four shots to reach the green on the par-4 ninth.

“I had to chip sideways back into the fairway,” he said. “Just was a little too aggressive after that. Yeah, short-sided myself and I didn’t get up and down and suddenly you walk away with double-bogey. Yeah, that was a bit annoying, but it happens.”

Kuchar was 5 under after 11 holes. Thirty feet away from the pin on the next hole, he failed to get up and down and missed a seven-foot putt for par. He got a shot back with a birdie on his 14th hole, and parred out, falling short in a bid to match his season-best round of 64 at the Sony Open in Hawaii, where he finished in the top 10.

“A lot of good and bad that can happen here on this course,” Kuchar said. “I was kind of managing early on in the round and then found a little something on about the fifth or sixth hole. I started having some birdie chances and converted on a few late in my first nine.”

Kuchar has won nine times on the PGA TOUR. McCarthy, Rai and Spaun are looking for their first.

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