Thomas works OT for ‘W’
Takes Honda playoff; Tiger makes big leap
Justin Thomas was down to his last chance when he delivered his most clutch shot of the final round in the Honda Classic.
And he wasn’t finished. Thomas nearly holed a gap wedge at the par-5 18th hole for a birdie to force a playoff with Luke List. Moments later, he hit 5-wood over the water, urged it to keep going and lost it momentarily in the darkening sky above PGA National.
“All I was looking at was the water to see if it splashed,” Thomas said. “And it didn’t. So I figured I was in the bunker, and then people started clapping and I could kind of see some little white dot on the green.”
That set up a 2-putt birdie that made him a winner when List, who hit his own bold shot in regulation to the 18th to set up birdie, could only manage par.
Thomas closed with a 2-under-par 68 and won for the second time this season. He also won in a playoff at the CJ Cup in South Korea last fall. With eight career victories, including seven in his past 31 starts on the PGA Tour, he moved to No. 3 in the world. He is one spot ahead of longtime friend Jordan Spieth for the first time, which was of little significance to Thomas.
“Not really,” he said. “Because there’s still two more spots that I want to climb.’
List, going for his first PGA Tour victory, shot 32 on the back nine and closed with a 69. His only regret was a tee shot wide right in the playoff that landed amid palm trees and left him little options. He went left against the bleachers and hit a superb approach to 25 feet but 2-putted.
“Obviously, it hurts right now,” List said. “But I think that when I look back on it, I’ll be proud of the way I hung in there.”
Alex Noren (67) finished third. He was tied for the lead when he went for the green at the 18th, only for the ball to get hung up on the collar of a bunker.
Tiger Woods was briefly within 3 shots of the lead on the front nine. He closed with a 70 and finished 12th.
More importantly, he made that Sunday red shirt look a little brighter, at least for a while. With an 8-foot birdie putt at the par4 eighth, he seemed in the hunt. But he made bogey to close out his front nine, and he still was 4 shots behind until getting swallowed up again by the water-filled closing stretch. He put his tee shot at 15 into water and made double bogey for the second straight day and 3-putted the 16th for bogey.
“I made a big leap this week because I really hit it well,” Woods said. “I was able to control it, especially in this wind, which is not easy.”
Korda dominates
Jessica Korda closed with a 4-under 67 to complete a 4-shot victory and set the tournament record at the Honda LPGA Thailand in Chonburi.
Korda held off Lexi Thompson and Moriya Jutanugarn to finish at 25-under 263, breaking by 3 shots the 72-hole record on the Pattaya Old Course at Siam Country Club.
Korda won for the first time since 2015 in Malaysia. Her fifth career victory comes two months after she had surgery to correct her overbite, which delayed the start of her season.
“I just came with no expectations after surgery. It’s really hard for me to move. All this stuff is just still really hard, but I’m really, really happy that I chose to come back in this event exactly where I started my rookie year in 2011. I don’t think I could have asked for a better win,” she said.
Thompson, who won here in 2016, turned in a bogey-free round that included eight birdies for a 64.
“It’s an incredible thing to be able to win again,” Korda said. “I haven’t won in two years. And who knows? It’s so hard out here. These girls are so good. I mean, look at the scoreboard. I had to shoot 25-under just to win.”
Jutanugarn, the sister of former world No. 1 Ariya Jutanugarn, never got closer than 2 shots off the lead.
Pepperell prevails
Eddie Pepperell survived a tense finish to close with a 2-under 70 and win the Qatar Masters for his first European Tour title.
The 27-year-old Englishman held off a spirited challenge from Oliver Fisher at Doha Golf Club in Oha. Fisher (71) needed a third successive birdie on the 18th hole to force a playoff, but his putt from 6 feet slipped past the hole.
Pepperell finished at 18-under 270.