Brian Harman handles the wind and cold at Texas Open for his first win since British Open
Brian Harman handles the wind and cold at Texas Open for his first win since British Open
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Brian Harman handled the wind and the chill Sunday with a pair of key birdies on the back nine Sunday in the Valero Texas Open, closing with a 3-over 75 for a three-shot victory, his first title since the 2023 British Open.
Harman began the final round with a three-shot lead and it soon became a tight battle with Andrew Novak, who was going for his first PGA Tour victory and a spot in the Masters.
Harman never lost the lead, though it dropped to one shot with a bogey on No. 6 and a double bogey on the ninth hole when he had to take a penalty drop after a pulled tee shot and still could only advance it to the fairway.
But he holed a 15-foot birdie putt on the 12th hole to give him some breathing room, and he got up-and-down from a bunker on the par-5 14th and his lead was back to three shots.
He followed that with a pair of bogeys, but left the mistakes at the end to Novak.
“Just so proud of how I handled these conditions,” Harman said. “This golf course gave me all I wanted today and happy to come out on top.”
Novak, two shots behind with two to play, bogeyed the 17th with a bad chip and the par-5 18th with a bad drive. He shot 76 and fell into a tie for third with Maverick McNealy (72).
Ryan Gerard made his only bogey on the final hole for a 69 to finish runner-up. It was one of only seven rounds under par at the TPC San Antonio.
Harman was still under pressure with two holes to play, especially coming off back-to-back bogeys. His tee shots bounced through the bunker and into the rough, and he pitched to about 12 feet for a stress-free par.
Novak drove over the green, but his pitch up the shelf hit the slope and rolled back to his feet. His birdie chip ran 6 feet by and he missed the putt to fall three behind.
On the 18th, Novak pulled his tee shot in the barren area of trees and scrub brush. He pitched back to the fairway, tried to reach the green and narrowly went into the creek. He had to stand on a boulder to play onto the green and he missed the 10-foot par putt.
Patrick Fishburn had an eagle-birdie finish for a 68 and was part of a large group that tied for fifth. The eagle came on the 17th hole, where Fishburn holed a 105-foot putt. It was the longest putt anyone made on the PGA Tour since 2008.
Harman had been struggling since his major breakthrough at Hoylake and was on the verge of falling out of the top 50. Now he heads to the Masters with a much-needed win.
Adding to the difficult of the conditions was his mind being on a close family friend, Cathy Dowdy. She spent time in a coma after helping to rescue Harman’s 6-year-old son from a rip current in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, last October while his family was on vacation.
“Just playing with a heavy heart today. Ms. Cathy, she’s not doing so good,” Harman said. “Just thinking about her all day.”
The conditions were so difficult that four players, including Tommy Fleetwood, failed to break 80 and the course played to an average score of 74.8.
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