Winning the Sony Open almost became an afterthought for Canada’s Nick Taylor during Sunday’s final round.
But get this guy into a playoff, and he knows what to do.
Taylor knocked in a birdie putt from less than 3 feet away on the second playoff hole to win the tournament in Hawaii at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu.
“I’m a bit stunned this worked out this way,” Taylor said.
It’s his fifth PGA Tour victory. The last three have come in playoffs.
“I feel like I can rise to the occasion,” Taylor said. “It’s pretty fun.”
Taylor, who had a dramatic eagle to conclude the final round, matched Colombia’s Nico Echavarria with 16-under-par 264s. They both turned in 5-under 65s in the final round.
Taylor and Echavarria were forced to repeat the par-5 No. 18 after they both birdied it on the first extra hole. Taylor made a 10-foot putt and Echavarria followed by draining a 5 1/2-footer. On the second playthrough, Echavarria missed an 8 1/2-footer for birdie to set up Taylor for the win.
Echavarria, 30, was trying to post a PGA Tour victory for the third consecutive year. In regulation, he birdied No. 18 after blasting from a bunker.
But on the second playoff hole, he used three putts to reach the hole.
“One bad putt can’t define a great week,” Echavarria said, bemoaning the first attempt after reaching the green.
Taylor’s chip-in from the fringe for an eagle 3 on No. 18 catapulted him into contention before waiting for others to finish to see if it held up.
That put him 6 under for the final 11 holes of regulation. It also was redemption after he missed back-to-back birdie putts from less than 5 feet away on the back side.
So, there were several less-than-encouraging moments for Taylor along the way.
“It’s a tough day. I was 1 over through seven,” Taylor said. “Not really thinking about winning necessarily. Got on a birdie streak there. Then I missed two short putts on 15 and 16. I was a little down after those two missed putts.”
Echavarria recovered after bogeys on his first two holes. He had birdies on Nos. 16 and 18.
“I am showing myself that I am ready to fight for the tournaments,” Echavarria said. “I am fighting for the tournaments. I fought hard today, and I am playing very well, and I must continue like this.”
Third-round leader J.J. Spaun (68) and Germany’s Stephan Jaeger (67) shared third place at 15 under. They were in the final grouping and had chances to join the leaders, but both finished with pars.
Spaun, seeking his second victory on the PGA Tour, went to the par-3 17th hole with the lead, but he bogeyed there. By the time he reached the 18th tee, he had fallen behind Taylor and Echavarria.
Spaun played the first eight holes in 3 under and then recorded eight consecutive pars before the misstep on No. 17.
Jaeger stayed in contention despite a lost tee shot on No. 16. He pulled off a bogey on the hole.
Eric Cole (68) birdied the final hole to finish alone in fifth place at 14 under. There was a four-way tie for sixth place at 13 under with Jackson Suber (65), Adam Schenk (65), Patrick Fishburn (69) and Keegan Bradley (68).
It marked the sixth consecutive Sony Open decided by one stroke or a playoff. Four of those have involved at least one extra hole.
In those six tournaments, a U.S. golfer has won only twice, including the late Grayson Murray last year. Taylor is the first Canadian to win the event.
–Field Level Media
