HONOLULU (AP) — Grayson Murray stuffed a wedge to 3 feet for birdie on the 18th hole for a 3-under 67 to join a three-way playoff and then won the Sony Open on Sunday with a 40-foot birdie putt to set himself up for a potentially lucrative year.
Murray felt like a renewed person even before starting the season in Hawaii. He says he has been sober for eight months and was in a better frame of mine.
The victory not only gets him in the Masters for the first time, Murray now has a spot in the $20 million signature events the rest of the season.
As big as the win was for Murray, it was a tough loss for Byeong Hun An and Keegan Bradley.
An was short of the par-5 18th green in the playoff in thick rough and pitched on to 4 feet, giving him the best chance at winning. But after Murray made his 40-footer, and Bradley missed his 18-foot birdie putt, An missed the short putt.
An had birdied the 18th in regulation for a 64.
Bradley broke out of a five-way tie with a 20-foot birdie putt on 15th hole. But he had pars the rest of the way for a 67, missing the fairway on the 18th in regulation and hitting a sand wedge some 20 feet short of the pin that took away a good birdie chance.
EUROPEAN TOUR
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Tommy Fleetwood took advantage of Rory McIlroy’s two big back-nine errors on win the Dubai Invitational.
McIlroy had already three-putted from 2 feet at No. 14 by the time he reached the 18th tee with a one-shot lead and pulled his drive into the water.
Fleetwood followed that by driving into the middle of the fairway and sent his approach to 16 feet, well inside McIlroy.
McIlroy missed his winding putt up the hill and Fleetwood made his own to a 4-under 67 and finish at 19-under 265. He was a stroke clear of McIlroy (67) and Thriston Lawrence (64) in the first European tour event of the year.
PGA TOUR OF AUSTRALASIA
CHIRNSIDE PARK, Australia (AP) — Matt Griffin completed a wire-to-wire victory in the Heritage Classic, closing with a 3-under 69 to finish six shots ahead.
Griffin opened with an 11-under 61 and finished at 24 under for his first victory since the 2016 New Zealand Open.
Amateur Quinn Croker (68) and Jak Carter (70) tied for second.
___
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
