Rai takes advantage of Greyserman's collapse to win Wyndham Championship
Aaron Rai took full advantage of rookie Max Greyserman's late-round collapse to win the Wyndham Championship by two strokes Sunday.
Greyserman held a four-shot lead with five holes to go, but recorded a quadruple-bogey on the 14th hole and a double-bogey on the 16th to fall out of contention.
Place | Player | Total to par | Round 4 score |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Aaron Rai | -18 | 64 |
2 | Max Greyserman | -16 | 69 |
T-3 | J.J. Spaun | -15 | 64 |
T-3 | Ryo Hisatsune | -15 | 67 |
5 | Luke Clanton | -14 | 69 |
The victory is Rai's first on the PGA TOUR in his 89th start. He was three strokes back entering the final round.
"A dream come true," he told CBS' Amanda Balionis. "It's truly a dream to even get into the PGA TOUR, but then understanding how difficult it is out here and how strong the standard of golf is, I'm just extremely grateful. I think it hasn't quite sunk in just yet. An amazing achievement."
Rai enjoyed a bogey-less round and recorded six birdies - including one on the 18th hole - to help secure his victory.
Greyserman was also on the hunt for his first PGA TOUR win and appeared to be in control after logging his second eagle of the round on the 13th hole. However, his tee shot on No. 14 went out of bounds.
From 4-shot lead to co-leader.
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 11, 2024
Max Greyserman makes a quadruple bogey on No. 14 after his tee shot goes OB. pic.twitter.com/ne5GqDwICb
Two holes later, Greyserman had trouble finishing from three feet out.
3 putts from 3 feet.
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 12, 2024
Max Greyserman now trails by 1 with 2 holes left. pic.twitter.com/6vlalfPIln
Greyserman decided to focus on the positives after the tournament.
"Played really well today, obviously had a couple blunders, but came back with a birdie on the par-5 (15th) after that quad," he said. "Just gonna take away that I hung in there, I'm playing good golf."
"It's golf, stuff happens," he continued. "I'll go pet my dog after this, hang out with my wife."
It was a marathon day, as golfers had to play 36 holes because of previous weather delays.
Matt Kuchar opted not to finish his round Sunday due to darkness. He'll complete the rest of the 18th hole Monday. The other two players in the final group, Greyserman and Chad Ramey, finished the hole.
Kuchar was quick to hit his drive on the final hole while Rai was still in the middle of the fairway preparing for his second shot, according to NBC Sports' Brentley Romine.
The 46-year-old currently sits tied for 12th, but he held a one-shot lead after the rain-delayed second round. He needed a win to make the FedEx Cup Playoffs. Kuchar previously made the playoffs in each season since the FedEx Cup's inception in 2007.
Kuchar told officials he was done before Rai finished, reports Golf Channel's Todd Lewis, per SiriusXM's Jason Sobel.
"I was trying to set an example for Max (Greyserman)," he said. "We were so far past when we should've stopped play. ... By me not playing, I thought it might show Max he's got an important shot to hit."
Kuchar is the only player who still needs to end his round. CBS commentator Jim Nantz doesn't seem eager to take in the action.
"I don't expect we're going to be bringing you that coverage tomorrow," he said, according to GOLF.com.
Kuchar will make around $135,000 if he ends his tournament with a par or just under $224,000 if he makes birdie, per Romine. However, he'll make a tad over $77,000 if he closes out with a bogey.
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