At last year’s U.S. Open, J.J. Spaun made a 64-foot birdie putt to polish off his first major victory. He used another remarkable shot, this time from the tee box, to return to the winner’s circle.
Spaun shot a 5-under-par 67 that included a late eagle in the final round of the Valero Texas Open to win the tournament for the second time on a long final day of play Sunday in San Antonio.
“I haven’t been feeling at the form that I wanted to be based off of last season,” Spaun said. “Just trying to take each day as it comes and accepting what I have. Just got such a great team behind me that’s been supporting me. Just means a lot to come back and win here at a place that’s been so good to me.”
Spaun finished at 17-under 271 and then waited for several groups to finish for a one-shot victory at TPC San Antonio’s Oaks Course.
This weekend’s championship wasn’t secured until Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre, playing in the final group, misfired on his second shot on the final hole and recovered only for a par, leaving him with 70 for the round and 16 under for the tournament.
Michael Kim (69) and England’s Matt Wallace (68) also shared second place. Andrew Putnam (70) and Sweden’s Ludvig Aberg (70) were tied for fifth at 15 under.
Spaun’s first Texas Open title, won in 2022, was his only PGA Tour win before breaking through at the U.S. Open last June.
After winning the major last year, the attention that accompanied his new status might have worked against him.
“I put a lot of pressure on myself this year to start the year, and a lot of expectations,” Spaun said. “It’s the complete opposite of the mantra I had all year last year that really helped me, so I tried to get back to that. Went into the last few weeks starting at The Players just trying to be freed up and put less pressure on myself. It’s been trying, but sticking to that mantra has really helped me.”
Spaun reached the green off the tee on the par-4, 306-yard 17th hole. His ball settled 9 1/2 feet from the cup, and his eagle putt proved enough even after he settled for par on the par-5 18th.
Spaun also had birdies on Nos. 14 and 16 sandwiched around a bogey on the 15th.
MacIntyre, the second-round leader, also had an eagle on No. 17, making a 16 1/2-foot putt to keep his hopes alive.
“I was proud of the way I played,” said MacIntyre, who also finished runner-up to Spaun at the U.S. Open. “Disappointed with some of the bogeys.”
Some golfers played as many as 30 holes Sunday after storms cut play short Saturday.
“I thought the course drained a lot better than I would have expected,” Kim said. “Playing lift, clean and place, so it wasn’t too bad.”
Wallace set the pace, exiting the final green at 16 under and holding a one-stroke lead, but some groups had yet to complete nine holes in the final round at the time.
Wallace needed a victory this week to receive the final available invite to the Masters. Spaun was already in the field for Augusta.
“I played so good over these last couple days and the last couple weeks as well,” Wallace said.
Wallace scored 64 for the third round and then heated up again late in the final round with birdies on Nos. 15-17 before taking a par on the final hole after playing two balls out of the rough.
Putnam was disappointed with a bogey-birdie-bogey finish.
“It was raining all day and windy and cold,” Putnam said. “Yeah, I hit a lot of good shots. Kind of a bummer how the last few played out.”
To expedite play, the golfers stayed in their third-round groups for the final round in what amounted to near-continuous play.
MacIntyre birdied his first hole Sunday — No. 7 — but then played the final 11 holes of the third round at 2 over without a birdie and finished with 72.
Kevin Yu of Taiwan shot 69 in the final round and placed seventh at 14 under. Japan’s Ryo Hisatsune led briefly during the final round, but three bogeys in a five-hole stretch dimmed his chances. He posted 72 and tied Chandler Phillips (71) for eighth at 13 under.
There were weather delays during each of the first three days of the tournament.
–Field Level Media
