Sam Burns flirted with history en route to his first PGA Tour win at the Valspar Championship.
Two players entered the final round of the Valspar Championship with the lead, but it was Sam Burns who broke away for his first win on the PGA Tour.
The 24-year-old shot a 3-under 68 on Sunday to separate from Keegan Bradley to win at the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Golf Resort in Palm Harbor, Florida. Burns finished at 17 under for the tournament, one shot shy of the event’s 18 under scoring record set by Vijay Singh in 2004.
Bradley finished runner-up at 14 under, followed by Viktor Hovland and Cameron Tringale, who tied for third at 13 under. Abraham Ancer wrapped up the top five at 12 under.
Next week the Tour tees it up at Quail Hollow in Charlotte for the Wells Fargo Championship.
Sam Burns is seeking his first PGA Tour title while Keegan Bradley hasn’t won in nearly three years. Max Homa lurks one back in Tampa.
PALM HARBOR, Fla. – Sam Burns threatened to run away with the Valspar Championship on Saturday, but two late bogeys in the Snake Pit left him, where he started – tied for the 54-hole lead with Keegan Bradley after they both shot 2-under par 69s at Innisbrook Resort’s Copperhead Course.
But what looked to be at most a two-man race to the title has company after Max Homa, who caught Burns from behind in Los Angeles in February, buried a 33-foot birdie putt from the fringe at the last to shoot his second 66 of the week and trail by one.
“I just wanted to get as close as I could to the lead – they were playing so well – so getting that putt to go in at 18 and get one closer felt good,” said Homa, who busted out a fist pump in celebration, “and felt like I could let a little bit out and enjoy the moment.”
At the start of the day, Burns, who came home in 30 on Friday, picked up where he left off with a 4-under start through his first five holes, including an eagle at the par-5 first hole. Burns blasted a hybrid from 233 yards to 3 feet.
“That shot in there on (No.) 1 was kind of a bonus,” Burns said.
That gave him the solo lead and he added to it with a 35-foot birdie putt at 3 and an up-and-down from the sand at No. 5, converting from 12 feet for birdie. He was 16 under for the tournament and led Bradley by two shots and Homa and the rest of the field were deep in his rearview mirror. Burns, 24, seemingly could do no wrong, but that turned out to be his final circle on the scorecard. He made 10 pars in a row before failing to get up and down from left of the 16th green and going bunker to bunker at 18 and needing to can a 9-foot putt to salvage bogey and finish at 14-under 199.
Burns, who has four top-10 finishes this season, had a chance to win his first PGA Tour title at the Genesis Invitational in February, building a three-stroke lead with nine holes to go but made three bogeys in a four-hole stretch and settled for a third-place finish. Homa swooped in and claimed the title in Tinseltown in a playoff over Tony Finau. Asked what he learned from that setback, Burns said, “I think for me it’s just taking a little more time in those moments and really talk through the shot and really have a clear plan of what I’m trying to do.”
Sam Burns watches his tee shot on the 15th hole during the third round of the Valspar Championship golf tournament. (Photo: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports)
Bradley continued to stick to his plan and played another fine round. In fact, he went so far as to say that it could’ve been his best round of the tournament, which included 64 on Thursday.
“I just didn’t hole the putts that I’ve been making the first two rounds,” he said.
Bradley kept within shouting range of Burns with birdies at the par 5s on the front, but fell three behind the lead with a bogey at 13. That’s when he delivered his shot of the day, pitching in from 35 feet from the rough for eagle. Bradley ended his round with a bogey, but he’s in position to end a nearly-three-year drought since his last win at the 2018 BMW Championship.
“I know I can do it, I know I’ve been up here and won some big tournaments in my career and I feel like if I go out tomorrow and stick to my process, I can have a chance coming down the end,” Bradley said.
Homa was in good spirits after his birdie putt at 18. He was as many as seven strokes back after a bogey at the third hole.
“I felt like that was the biggest part of today was playing really patient, not worrying too much about what everybody was doing, just trying to shoot the lowest score we could and I feel like it’s working,” Homa said.
Did it ever at the sixth hole. After a birdie at five to right the ship, he holed his approach from 137 yards with a 52-degree wedge for eagle. Still, it couldn’t compare to that finishing birdie and the fist pumps that followed.
“Six was cool but 18 was loud,” Homa said of the response from the crowd. “That was fun.”
Ted Potter Jr. shot the low round of the day, an 8-under 63, to lead a quartet of golfers at 10-under 201. Potter took just 20 putts, gaining nearly six strokes on the field with his shortstick and now leads in Strokes Gained: Putting for the tournament.
World No. 1 Dustin Johnson struggled to 3-over 74 and dropped to a tie for 60thwhile No. 2 Justin Thomas shot 67 despite another poor putting performance and trails by eight strokes.
“If I’m putting well this week I’m winning this tournament without question,” he said.
He’ll have to putt out of his mind on Sunday to give Bradley and Burns, who tied the 54-hole tournament scoring record, a scare. But both have failed to close the two times that they held the 54-hole lead or co-lead on the PGA Tour, while Homa is lurking one back and said he’s beginning to feel at ease being in contention.
“It’s funny, it’s 10 or so years ago but I used to do this a decent amount in college and when I first turned pro I was comfortable in these positions,” he said. “So, I had a kind of a dry spell for awhile, but when I get back here now and I’ve kind of been in this position a few more times more recently, I feel like kind of like the old me’s back a little bit, mentally.”
AVONDALE, La. – Sam Burns grew up in nearby Shreveport and played college golf at LSU, but at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans it’s up for debate who has a bigger following – Burns, who said he’s still scrounging to meet ticket demand, or his …
AVONDALE, La. – Sam Burns grew up in nearby Shreveport and played college golf at LSU, but at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans it’s up for debate who has a bigger following – Burns, who said he’s still scrounging to meet ticket demand, or his partner in the two-man team format, Billy Horschel.
“We heard tons of ‘Geaux Tigers.’ That was cool for me,” Burns said. “But they like him around here, too.”
Horschel’s popularity in The Big Easy has been of the hard-earned variety. For starters, the Pete Dye design built along the Mississippi Delta was the site of Horschel’s first PGA Tour victory in 2013, when the event was contested as a 72-hole stroke play tournament and he shot 64 on Sunday. Despite playing for the Florida Gators and calling Florida home, Horschel’s fondness for this suburb of New Orleans grew again when he teamed with Scott Piercy to win as a team in 2018. And he and Burns, who are first-time partners in the event, are off to a flying start this week, making birdies at the first four holes and five of the first six en route to shooting a best-ball score of 9-under 63, one stroke off the pace set by Norwegian natives and former Oklahoma State teammates Viktor Hovland and Kris Ventura.
Credit for the Burns and Horschel pairing was given to Travis Perkins, Burns’s caddie who happens to be a good friend with Horschel. So far, opposites attract. Horschel’s confidence borders on cockiness and he wears his emotions on his sleeve while Burns is quiet and more reserved.
“I think it’s great to have a little yin and yang,” Horschel said.
In Thursday’s best-ball scoring format, Burns let his clubs do the talking for their team. When asked who had contributed the birdies, Horschel, who won the WGC Dell Matchplay in March, pointed to his partner, who is still seeking his first PGA Tour title, and said, “It was all him. He made eight and I made one.”
That’s what teammates are for.
“What he’s shown over the last six months, it’s just a matter of time before he breaks into the winner’s circle and he’s going to be one of those guys who’s mentioned with the Collin Morikawas and Matthew Wolffs as one of the best players in their early 20s,” Horschel said. “With Sam being 24, I’ve got a young partner for a long time now, as long as he doesn’t kick me to the curb.”
Sam Burns plays from the 9th green during the first round of the 2021 Zurich Classic of New Orleans. (Photo: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports)
Though Horschel had just the lone birdie at No. 12, his contribution on Thursday didn’t go unnoticed by his young teammate, who credited him for some helpful reads on the greens. Five of the eight birdies collected by Burns were from more than 10 feet away, including a 31-foot putt that dropped at No. 6.
“There were several times today where he freed me up,” Burns said.
Horschel smiled, and then relayed the one time that he regretted giving advice at No. 8.
“I caddied really bad on that one,” Horschel said. “He had the line and I said, ‘Well, just don’t hit it too hard.’ I think that put an extra thought in his head.”
Burns wasn’t the only player with a hot putter. Ventura and Hovland were just 1-under through six holes before Ventura, who rolled in seven birdies for his team, caught fire with the flat stick and they carded birdies on nine of their last 12 holes.
“It was cool to watch,” said Hovland, who made three birdies including one at the last to give them a one-stroke edge over five teams, including Keegan Bradley and Brendan Steele, heading into Friday’s second round which will be played under the foursomes format (alternate shot).
“Tomorrow, in foursomes, it’s buckle your seat belt, make no apologies and hang on for dear life kind of a day,” said Steele.
Max Homa parred the second playoff hole to defeat Tony Finau at the Genesis Invitational.
PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. — Max Homa came into the Genesis Invitational having made five straight cuts, including a tie for seventh last week at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Credit a new-found sense of self for Homa.
Now, credit Homa with a second PGA Tour title. And it’s a big one for the Los Angeles native: the first-place check is good for $1,674,000 and with it comes a three-year PGA Tour exemption.
On Sunday, Homa gave chase from ahead, playing in the second-to-last group at Riviera Country Club. When Sam Burns bogeyed the 14th hole, Homa moved into a tie for the lead at 11 under. Homa kept bogey off his final-round scorecard while stacking up five birdies, including one on the 17th hole to get to 12 under.
Tony Finau was already in the clubhouse after shooting a final-round 64—tied for low round of the week—to get to 12 under. Homa striped his tee shot on 18 a massive 339 yards and then stuffed his approach to a back pin to about four feet. One more birdie would win it.
But Homa lipped out on the left side. He finished regulation at 12 under to force a playoff.
After they both parred the 10th to open the extra session, Homa made par on the par-3 14th while Finau bogeyed, giving Homa the win.
Homa opened the week with a 66 and then posted back-to-back 70s to get into contention. He closed out his second PGA Tour victory in playoff style, his first since the 2019 Wells Fargo Championship.
Sam Burns, aiming to go wire-to-wire at Riviera, had a three-shot lead on Homa and Finau after he birdied the ninth but he faltered down the stretch with bogeys on Nos. 12, 14 and 15. He did birdie 17 but parred 18 to miss the playoff by a shot to finish solo third.
Conditions on Sunday were just about perfect, a stark contrast to the high winds and fast golf course the players encountered on Saturday, which saw a four-hour delay to the blustery conditions.
Sam Burns holds a two-stroke lead heading at Riviera as he attempts to claim his first PGA Tour title in wire-to-wire fashion.
Sam Burns has been leading the Genesis Invitational since shooting a tournament-best 7-under 64 on Thursday.
He overcame windy conditions on Saturday and finished off a 74 on Sunday morning, the highest score of any player in the top 10, to claim a two-stroke lead.
Here are Five Things You Need to Know about the 24-year-old former LSU star from Shreveport, Louisiana, who is bidding for his debut victory on the PGA Tour.
Impressive pedigree
2014 AJGA Rolex Junior Player of the Year; a three-time state champion at Louisiana; All-American and Jack Nicklaus Award winner in 2016-17. He may not have grabbed the headlines as quickly as Collin Morikawa, Viktor Hovland and Matthew Wolff but he’s got game and he’s definitely been “trending.”
Philip Barbaree and Sam Burns, who would later become LSU teammates, pictured together at the AJGA Wyndham Cup.
Keeping a level head
How does Burns, who qualified for the 2016 U.S. Open as an amateur, keep a level head on a tough course playing under tough conditions?
“I think growing up with older siblings I was forced to be that way just because I couldn’t overpower them, I couldn’t really do what I wanted to do,” he said on Friday. “I know a golf course like this, when you kind of run hot around here and start getting a little hot emotion, it definitely doesn’t help.”
Holding a lead
Burns held a share of the 54-hole lead in Houston, but shot 72 on Sunday and finished T-7. Burns has struggled in the final round, shooting in the 70s in five of his seven final rounds for an average score of 70.57, nearly two strokes higher than his Thursday-Friday scoring average. Still, he’s confident his time will come.
“Comparison is kind of the thief of joy. I try to stay as far away from that as possible,” he said. “There’s no timeline for me.”
Inspired by a major champion
Burns grew up pals with Carter Toms, son of 2001 PGA Championship winner David Toms.
“He’s spent a lot of time around the house, gone on vacations with us, played a lot of PlayStation upstairs,” David Toms recalled to PGA Tour.com in 2019. “Just watched them grow up – and watched him become a great golfer.”
For Burns, that included joining the Toms family on a trip to Fort Worth, Texas, and witnessing the 13-time PGA Tour winner’s final victory in person at the 2011 Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial Country Club. “One of the things I remember was I was watching when he holed the wedge for eagle. That was pretty cool to see,” he said. “And I just remember everybody was really excited to watch and, you know, as a 14-year-old kid watching any PGA Tour player, much less a guy that you knew, in contention that it was just a really special moment.”
Might that be a memory that Burns tries to tap into on Sunday?
Tiger Woods and Sam Burns walk off the tee on the fifth hole during the final round of the 2018 Honda Classic on Sunday, Feb. 25, 2018, in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. (Photo: Wilfredo Lee/Associated Press)
Dueling with Tiger
In the final round of the 2018 Honda Classic, Burns, 21 at the time, drew Woods in his final round pairing. When asked if he had ever played with Woods, his childhood favorite, Burns answered, “Only on the video game.” He even had the chutzpah to say to Woods as they walked off the first tee, “Man, it’s crazy all these people who came out to watch me today, isn’t it?”
That wasn’t the only burn from Burns. He beat Woods straight up, shooting a bogey-free 68 to Tiger’s 70. If he can shoot another number like that this Sunday with Dustin Johnson and others breathing down his neck, Burns likely will be handed the Genesis Invitational trophy by none other than tournament host, Tiger Woods.
The third round of the 2021 Genesis Invitational finally wrapped up early on Sunday morning at Riviera Country Club.
PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. — The third round of the 2021 Genesis Invitational finally wrapped up early on Sunday morning at Riviera Country Club and it’s official: Saturday’s high winds and ensuing four-hour delay delivered a serious body blow to the field.
The third-round scoring average of 73.343 is the highest at Riviera for a weekend round since 1983.
Sam Burns, who led by five after two rounds, now holds a two-shot lead over World No. 1 Dustin Johnson, Matthew Fitzpatrick and Max Homa.
Burns started his Sunday with five holes to go to finish his third round and bogeyed the 14th hole to fall back to 9 under. He made a nine-footer for par on the 18th hole to put a cap on a 74. This is his second 54-hole lead.
Fitzpatrick parred the 18th to get to 7 under. He was one of three golfers to break 70 in the third round. Matt Jones and Talor Gooch did as well but they played all 18 holes of their third rounds in Saturday’s blustery conditions.
Johnson, who won the tournament in 2017, has posted rounds of 68-67-71 and is seeking his 25th Tour victory. Johnson has at least one Tour win every year since 2008.
There is a six-way tie for fifth at 5 under between Jones, Gooch, Tony Finau, Cameron Smith, Patrick Cantlay and Alex Noren.
Jordan Spieth posted a third-round 73 and is T-11. Tyler McCumber, who was in Saturday’s final group, posted a third-round 77, as did Brooks Koepka, who is now T-49.
Sam Burns shot 64-66 at Riviera Country Club and has tied the 36-hole mark at the Genesis Invitational, where he leads by five shots.
PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. — Sam Burns shot 64-66 at Riviera Country Club to tie the 36-hole mark at the Genesis Invitational, where he walked off the course midday Friday leading by five shots.
His 130 total brings him into the conversation of breaking one of the longest-held records on the PGA Tour.
In the 1985 playing of this event, Lanny Wadkins shot a 20-under 264. It remains the longest-held 72-hole scoring record among current Tour events.
On Thursday Burns took his first-ever 18-hole lead. He jump-started his week with an eagle on No. 1 and has piled up 12 birdies since then. He didn’t have any bogeys on Friday after carding two of them on Thursday.
“I’d like to think that I have all the tools to win out here,” he said Friday. “Obviously there’s a lot of good players, really, really good players. I try not to get caught up in that and just trying to get better each week and just trying to build as the season goes on.”
Chasing is Tyler McCumber, who backed up his first-round 67 with a Friday 68. He’s doing this after emergency surgery to have a fingernail removed. After his second round, he said the pain is easing up a little.
“You just kind of adapt a bit. It’s pretty wild how quickly the body does adapt to things. I thought it was a little better today just to kind of focus on the golf and not really worry about the finger,” he said. “I made the call to leave my glove on so you don’t have that hassle of pulling it on and off over the stub thing. That was good.”
McCumber is at 7 under alongside Jason Kokrak, who also shot 68 on Friday.
Max Homa and Jordan Spieth are currently tied for fourth. Homa shot 70 on Friday, while Spieth posted a second straight 68. Spieth tied for fourth at the Waste Management Phoenix Open and tied for third at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
“Obviously Sam had some success on the greens and everywhere else, but it’s not like you can go chase people on this golf course,” he said.
Brooks Koepka is hanging around after his Friday 70. He’s 4 under overall, eight shots back.
“I just got my neck popped, so it feels a million times better,” Koepka said after his round. “One of the guys just did it, Brian. It’s a miracle. I feel so good right now, I feel so much better than I did this morning. This morning was absolutely brutal.
“I don’t know if I slept on a funny like a month and a half ago or what, but it’s just been tight for a while.”
Three players who won’t be teeing it up this weekend: Bryson DeChambeau, Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas, who is second-from-last after posting scores of 77-73.
Sir Nick Faldo made a longshot pick to win the Genesis Invitational, and he’s leading after the first round.
Nick Faldo won six major championships and 43 titles in all. Was a Ryder Cup stalwart. Got inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1997. Knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2009.
Not bad in the broadcast booth, either.
Seems he’s a pretty good prognosticator, too.
During Thursday’s broadcast of the first round of the Genesis Invitational at Riviera Country Club north of Los Angeles, Faldo disclosed his pre-tournament pick to win the star-studded affair featuring eight of the top-10 players in the world that is played in the shadow of Hollywood.
Sam Burns.
Sam Burns? The guy ranked 149th in the official world rankings? Was 100-1 shot to win? Is winless on the PGA Tour and a winner of one Korn Ferry tournament?
“He’s a ball-striker and this is a ball-striker’s course,” Faldo said. “He’s played well lately and yes, I picked him before the tournament started.”
Well, Burns looked really good and made Faldo look good.
Keyed by an eagle on the first hole from 19 feet and then finishing with three consecutive birdies, Burns posted a 7-under-par 64 to stand two clear of the field when he signed his card. His two bogeys were more than wiped out by the eight red numbers.
“It’s a great compliment,” Burns, 24, said after the round when told Faldo picked him. “Anytime a guy like that says you’re going to play well, it’s always a good sign, I guess.”
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Burns has touched contention in each of his three previous starts but couldn’t keep up his good play on Sunday. He quickly put whatever disappointments hit him at Pebble Beach last week behind him and was ready to go once he drove into the parking lot at Riviera.
“It’s golf, man,” he said. “It will eat at you if you let it. I think just forgetting the bad ones and learn as much as you can. I think we just hope to keep putting ourselves in that position.”
Burns gave credit to his caddie, Travis Perkins, for his solid round.
“Travis did a great job of putting us in the right spots,” he said. “I think a lot of this good play goes to him. He’s been really good out there and he’s kind of kept me calm and amps me up a little bit when I need it.
“I think we were just pretty consistent throughout the round. We knew we were going to have a tough stretch there to kind of start the back nine. I think just being patient out here. This golf course at times doesn’t offer you a lot of opportunities, so I think just with that mindset going in we were just going to kind of take what we could get.”
On Saturday, Day didn’t look like a hospital case, but rather like the guy once on top of the Official World Golf Ranking.
HOUSTON — Ask again if you must, but Jason Day is feeling no pain. He swears it.
He’s been consistent with that message throughout this week at the Vivint Houston Open. Each time Day comes to the virtual podium he’s asked about his neck, his back, his overall well-being. The question comes up so frequently that he makes little jokes or nods as if to brush it away quickly. On Thursday, he smiled and said he feels he’s faced that question plenty in his career.
There’s logic behind the daily interrogations. Just a year ago, Day talked with his wife about hanging it up for good, the pain too much for him to bear. And just a few weeks ago, Day withdrew from the CJ Cup with neck problems after completing the first three rounds at 10 under.
The good news is this: Day’s getting more and more questions about his consistent play as well. And for a guy who hasn’t won since the 2018 Wells Fargo Championship, he’s more than happy to field those.
During Saturday’s third round of the Vivint Houston Open, Day didn’t look like a hospital case, but rather like the guy once on top of the Official World Golf Ranking. Until the final hole, he played nearly mistake-free golf in posting his second 67 of the week, sandwiched around an also-solid 68.
Jason Day after finishing 8 under during the third round of the Houston Open golf tournament at Memorial Park Golf Course. Photo by Thomas Shea-USA TODAY Sports
At times when he’s struggled, Day has talked about his swing being in between patterns, but there’s been little of that this week. When asked the difference between those patterns and positive swings, he singled out his final drive of the day.
“The feel of swinging well is the drive on 18, and then anytime that I get the weak one to the right or kind of the smother draw, that’s kind of in between patterns. I’m just not really pleased with it. It’s just a work in progress, I’ve got to be patient with it,” Day said. “Right now I’m in contention, I’m one back going into tomorrow’s round, so it’s positive in regards to how I feel like I’m playing. I think the golf swing is holding up quite nicely and the body is, too.”
Unfortunately, after a solid round at Memorial Park Golf Course, Day followed that final drive with a three-putt that dropped him one behind leader Sam Burns heading into Sunday’s final round. Burns’ 68 has him leading at 9 under, but Day and Carlos Ortiz are both a single stroke behind.
“Obviously, you’d like to hole that one, which I was trying to,” Day said.
“Unfortunately, I just gave it a little bit too much gas. Overall it was a solid day. I think I drove it nice, hit a lot of good iron shots and I was just very patient out there today, so it was good to see. Looking forward to tomorrow.”
Perhaps his best shot of the day came on No. 12 when he briefly took the lead. On Thursday, Day pulled his tee shot on 12 to the left, then he pushed it right on Friday. But on Saturday, he piped a drive down the middle of the fairway —he was third in strokes gained off the tee on Saturday — leaving a tricky, but attackable 166-yard approach. Day stayed aggressive and stuck it to inside five feet.
“The miss, if you’re going to miss the green, it’s in that bunker to the right, but anything left of that pin is kind of death, hitting back up that hill and it’s very tough to judge,” he said. “I think the whole group kind of was feeding off each other today, everyone was playing some nice golf out there. Once again I was just trying to be as patient as possible. I know it’s a Saturday round, obviously can’t win it today, you’ve got to just give yourself an opportunity to get into tomorrow’s round.”
The energy that fed the group of Day, Burns and Ortiz kept the trio in the same position they entered in the morning.
Since Day is the only one of that trio who’s captured a PGA Tour title — and in fact, his first one came in Texas via the 2010 AT&T Byron Nelson at TPC Four Seasons Resort in Irving — does he have the edge heading into Sunday?
“No, I don’t think so,” Day said. “I would say that I’d probably be a
little bit more calmer than both those guys, but everyone’s going to be nervous on the first tee tomorrow.
“What I saw out of Carlos and Sam Burns, I think they’re playing some pretty good golf, too, so they’re going to be tough to beat tomorrow.”
