Patton Kizzire Held Off A Furious Rickie Fowler Charge To Secure His First TOUR Win
Big time congrats to 31-year-old Patton Kizzire, locking up his first PGA Tour win in Mexico yesterday. The 2008 Auburn grad outlasted Rickie Fowler in a 36-hole Sunday grind, fending off a late charge to win by 1 after a clutch par from an awkward spot on the 72nd. Fowler mounted a run with birdies at the 13th, 16th and 17th, then Kizzire found himself with a weird stance on the 18th.
A choked up, armsy 8-iron and two putts from there after a Fowler par earned Kizzire the W. Good on ya.
Kizzire’s Zurich Classic teammate is Jason Dufner, so you know he’s cool.
In a golf world oft filled with the Jordan Spieths and Justin Thomases of the world locking up majors and POY awards seemingly minutes after popping out the womb, it’s nice to see a guy like Kizzire come along the old fashioned way. He made it through Web Q-School in December 2014, was that tour’s money leader for much of the 2015 season and secured his first win there before graduating to the PGA Tour.
After an up-and-down szn which included everything from top-5 finishes to several missed cuts, Kizzire began trending in the right direction heading into Mayakoba.
Locking up the first win early in the wraparound season, and doing it against one of the game’s biggest stars, is sure to give Kizzire a nice confidence (and bank account) boost as we creep toward 2018.
The only thing that sucks? This.
Never want to be on the receiving end of 300+ texts. Brutal.
Rickie coming up short after finding himself in the lead over the weekend will add fuel to the “Fowler is overrated and can’t close” fire. He’s got 22 top-10s over the past two seasons but only one win since September 2015. His consistency and physical ability are undeniable, but how long can a guy go congratulating basically everybody else on Tour for winning? Rickie’s got four wins and no majors, but important to remember he’s still just 28 with a Players Championship to his name. He will of course remain of the game’s more fascinating figures to follow for the next couple decades. He’s currently the no. 7-ranked player in the world.
The other big star this week? This fairway cave.
People fucking love this cave.
The boys head to Sea Island, Georgia this week for the RSM Classic. Last year rookie Mackenzie Hughes became the first rookie to go wire-to-wire for his first win after draining this 18-footer on the third playoff hole.
(boy do I hate to see but also love to see the awkward short miss to blow a tourney followed immediately by a celly from the winner; sad but also enjoy watching over and over)
The Tour’s then off for Thanksgiving before returning for the Hero World Challenge and the return of the Tiger. Let’s go.