Scheffler’s dominant win at Players moves him back to No. 1

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This article was published 13/03/2023 (1272 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Scottie Scheffler took on the scary TPC Sawgrass as if he was playing alone. And by the time he got done with a masterful performance Sunday in The Players Championship, that’s about how it looked.

Scheffler ran off five straight birdies in the middle of his round, built a six-shot lead and left all the drama to everyone else on his way to a 3-under 69 to win the richest prize on the PGA Tour by five shots.

The victory was worth $4.5 million and sent Scheffler back to No. 1 in the world for the second time this year. He now has six victories in his last 27 starts on the PGA Tour, including the four wins he had last year culminated by his Masters title.

When he poured in a 20-foot par putt on the final hole, Scheffler had the largest margin of victory in The Players since Stephen Ames won by six in 2006.

Tyrrell Hatton birdied his last five holes for a 65, finishing when Scheffler was making the turn. Viktor Hovland (68) and Tom Hoge (70) were seven shots behind in a tie for third, each making nearly $1.5 million from the $25 million purse.

Scheffler, who finished at 17-under 271, became only the third player to win at the TPC Sawgrass with all four rounds in the 60s.

Min Woo Lee of Australia, making his Players Championship debut, briefly was tied for the lead but finished with a 76.

EUROPEAN TOUR

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Jorge Campillo of Spain seized control with three straight birdies late on his front nine and closed with a 5-under 66 for a two-shot victory Sunday in the Magical Kenya Open.

Campillo won for the third time in his European tour career, and his first title since the Qatar Masters in 2020, the last tournament played before golf was temporary shut down by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Campillo finished at 18-under 66 at Muthaiga Golf Club and won by two shots over Masahiro Kawamura of Japan and fellow Spaniard Santiago Tarrio, both of whom shot a 66.

The victory moves him to No. 8 in the Race to Dubai standings.

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Robert MacIntyre of Scotland, who began the final round one shot out of the lead, made only two birdies in his closing round of 70 and tied for seventh.

OTHER TOURS

Wade Ormsby of Australia closed with a 7-under 65 and then made a 12-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole to beat Chonlatit Chuenboonngam in the International Series-Thailand. Ormsby, who played on the LIV Golf circuit last year, won his fourth Asian Tour event. … Women’s British Open champion Ashleigh Buhai had a 4-under 68 to cap off a four-shot victory over Ana Pelaez Trivino in the Investec South African Women’s Open on the Ladies European Tour. … Louis Dobbelaar, a 21-year-old from Australia, won his first professional title on the PGA Tour of Australasia. He closed with a 3-under 69 for a three-shot victory over Sung Jin Yeo in the New Zealand PGA Championship. … Stefan Wears-Taylor came from three shots behind with an 8-under 64 for a one-shot victory in the Mediclinic Invitational on the Sunshine Tour in South Africa. Jake Redman (67) was runner-up, while George Coetzee, who had the 54-hole lead, finished third after a 70. … Hikaru Yoshimoto shot 3-under 69 and won a playoff over Shoko Sasaski (67) in the Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Ladies Yokohama Tire Golf Tournament on the Japan LPGA.

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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports