2016 AT&T Byron Nelson Tournament Roundup

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The final leaderboard for the 2016 AT&T Byron Nelson at TPC Four Seasons Resort in Irving, Texas is in. Sergio Garcia claimed the title by winning in a sudden-death playoff over runner-up Brooks Koepka. It marks Garcia’s ninth PGA Tour win and first since the 2012 Wyndham Championship. Below is the truncated top-10 leaderboard:

(1) Sergio Garcia (-15)
(2) Brooks Koepka (-15)
(3) Matt Kuchar (-14)
(T4) Colt Knost (-13)
(T4) Spencer Levin (-13)
(T4) Charles Howell III (-13)
(T4) Robert Garrigus (-13)
(T4) Tim Wilkinson (-13)
(T4) Bud Cauley (-13)
(T10) Justin Hicks (-12)
(T10) Kyle Reifers (-12)

Here are my thoughts on the champion and some notables near the top of the leaderboard:

Winner: Sergio Garcia (-15) – Believe it or not, this is only Garcia’s ninth Tour win, and it’s only his third win in eight years along with the 2008 Players and 2012 Wyndham. He is undoubtedly one of the best players under 10 wins and without a major title to his name. He has more European Tour wins (11) than he does PGA Tour wins; his last Euro Tour win was the 2014 Qatar Masters. Aside from this week he has only finished inside the top 10 once this 2015-2016 season: a solo second at the Honda Classic. Other decent results include a pair of T11 finishes at two of this season’s WGC events. His last four starts all saw finishes above the top 30 (including a T54 at the PLAYERS last week) — nothing very good to draw on coming into this week, at least that we know of. Note that Garcia won this event back in 2004 (also in a playoff). He also finished T3 in his debut at the tournament in 1999, so his record of form at this course is definitely something to speak about. Garcia himself admitted after his win that he knows he can play much better, so it will be interesting to see how he does moving forward into the rest of the season. Will this year finally be the year he wins his first major? Only time will tell.

Final round: 6 birdies and 4 bogeys for a 2-under 68. Scores in regulation: 63, 66, 68, 68 (265). In the first hole of the playoff, Koepka found the water off the tee, failed to reach the green on the next shot and two-putted for a double bogey. This opened up an easy path for Garcia, who two-putted for par to win. Playoff results: 4 (Win)

Brooks Koepka (-15) – This would have been 26-year-old bomber Koepka’s second Tour win, his first being at last year’s Waste Management Phoenix Open. This guy is a tremendous talent with a very bright future. He has a couple of good (recent) finishes in majors and numerous other top 10 finishes. He currently ranks #51 on the FedExCup list. He missed two cuts in his four previous Tour starts, and he finished T35 last week at the PLAYERS. Previous finishes at the Byron Nelson for Koepka are a T16 in 2015 and missed cut in 2014. Overall, there’s nothing really noteworthy to point out in terms of his current and course form. Regardless, I wouldn’t at all be surprised if he were to bounce back from this quickly and win at least once this season; one thing I’ve noticed is that golfers who finish runner-up or in the top 5 tend to come back stronger in the following weeks.

Final round: 2 birdies and 3 bogeys for a 1-over 71. Scores in regulation: 65, 64, 65, 71 (265). Despite a strong lead at one point in the tournament, he made two consecutive bogeys on the back nine and couldn’t get anything positive going to break away from the rest of the pack. Playoff results: 6 (Eliminated)

Have any congratulations for Sergio, or any other thoughts about the 2016 AT&T Byron Nelson?  Be sure to drop a comment below!


Featured image attributed to: Tour Pro Golf Clubs
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