‘Absolutely nuts’: Incredible PGA twist as star pulls off 1 in 250 comeback with one shot
Nick Taylor won the Sony Open in a dramatic playoff on Monday following a stunning play on the 72nd hole that forced extra holes.
Taylor looked certain to be out of the picture at the PGA Tour event after missing two four-foot putts for birdie on the 15th and 16th holes, leaving him two shots behind heading to the 18th.The Canadian then played to behind the green of the par-five, leaving him with a 59-foot chip for the eagle he would need to join Nico Echavarria in the lead on 16-under.
That’s when Taylor put his two easy birdie misses behind him with an incredible clutch shot that found the bottom of the cup to ultimately put him in a playoff against Echavarria.
“Are you kidding me?” the commentator said. “An unbelievable finish by Nick Taylor.
He later described the closing sequence as “absolutely nuts”.
Taylor then won the playoff at the second hole, putting his putting demons behind him with a three-foot birdie putt that clinched the win.
“I’m a bit stunned this worked out this way,” Taylor said.
“To be able to hit a nice pitch, unfortunate for Nico to hit a three-putt there to open the door for me, but knowing I can rise to the occasion, it’s pretty fun.”
According to Data Golf, Taylor held just a 0.4 per cent chance of winning the event when he stood on the 18th tee at 14-under, behind three players.
Earlier, JJ Spaun and Stephan Jaeger both made bogeys late in their rounds to drop out of a share of the lead and miss the playoff.
Taylor takes home $1.566 million (A$2.53m) for the win.
Taylor has history of clutch plays when in contention before. In 2023, he became the first Canadian to win the nation’s Open since 1954 after he drained a 72-foot eagle putt on the fourth playoff hole.
In winning on Monday, Taylor becomes the first player to win a PGA Tour playoff in three-striaght years since Bubba Watson in 2010-2012.
Echavarria, 30, missed out on adding to a trophy haul that included the 2023 Puerto Rico Open and the Zozo Championship three months ago in Japan.
“I misjudged the lag putt on the last hole. I didn’t think it was going to be that slow. Didn’t consider the wind,” Echavarria said. “But just one bad putt can’t define a great week.”
Taylor and Echavarria each fired a five-under par 65 in the final round to finish 72 holes on 16-under 264.
Source: FoxSports
