Former LSU great Burns tracks down Scheffler to win Schwab Challenge in playoff

PHOTO BY: LSU athletics.

Former LSU men’s golfer Sam Burns won his third PGA Tour title of the 2021-22 season on Sunday afternoon at the Charles Schwab Challenge at the Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas. It was a 38-footer with a Texas wedge that found the center of the cup to give Burns a playoff win over the No. 1 ranked golfer in the world, Scottie Scheffler.

“When I got into the clubhouse, I thought 10 (under par) was going to be the number,” Burns said after his fourth career PGA Tour win. “I did not envy those guys who were out on the course after I finished. It was a really hard golf course with lots of wind.

“I’m pretty exhausted. Mentally I was prepared to go as long as it took (in the playoff). I don’t know if I could have done it physically. But mentally I was ready. When coach calls your name, you’ve got to be ready to play, and I think we did a really good job of being ready.”

Burns’ total after the first three days of the tournament was 4-under 206 or seven strokes behind Scheffler. He closed out his round with six straight pars to get into the clubhouse at 9-under 271 for the tournament.

Burns’ 5-under 65 was even more impressive as the course average on Sunday resulted in a 72.3, more than two shots over par.

Burns and Scheffler, two great friends, went back to the No. 18 tee for the start of the playoff. Burns bombed a 301 yard 3-wood down the fairway, exactly 20 yards ahead of Scheffler.

Scheffler played first from the fairway and landed his 159-yard approach shot on the green, about 36 feet away from the hole. Burns launched a gap wedge that initially landed on the green but bounced off the back of the green due to the firmness.

Burns pulled out the putter from just off the green and connected on the 38-foot, two-inch putt that sent the crowd into a frenzy. Scheffler’s bid to match Burns was no good, and Burns was crowned the champion.

Burns moved to the No. 2 spot in the 2021-22 FedEx Cup Standings with 2,101 points on the season. Only Scheffler, at 3,142, has more points on the season. Burns earned more than $1.5 million in prize money and also received a fully restored and modernized 1979 Firebird Trans Am with the world ‘Schwab’ inscribed in multiple places on the car.

author avatar
Tiger Rag News Services

Be the first to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.


*


fifty four ÷ 18 =