MEMPHIS, TN – JUNE 12: Daniel Berger hits off the second tee during the final round of the FedEx St. Jude Classic at TPC Southwind on June 12, 2016 in Memphis, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
St. Jude Classic 2016 Results
Daniel Berger, PGA TOUR winner.
Last year’s Rookie of the Year captured his first TOUR victory on Sunday, shaking off a potentially rhythm-disrupting rain delay at the St. Jude Classic to shoot a 67 and finish the tournament at 13-under, three strokes ahead of Phil Mickelson, Brooks Koepka and Steve Stricker.
Here’s the Top 10 from TPC Southwind:
| Position | Player | Total |
| 1 | Daniel Berger | -13 |
| T2 | Brooks Koepka | -10 |
| T2 | Phil Mickelson | -10 |
| T2 | Steve Stricker | -10 |
| 5 | Dustin Johnson | -9 |
| 6 | Brian Gay | -8 |
| T7 | Russell Henley | -7 |
| T7 | Seung-Yul Noh | -7 |
| T9 | Shawn Stefani | -6 |
| T9 | Ken Duke | -6 |
| T9 | Brett Stegmaier |
-6 |
You can click here for the full leaderboard, and you can read on for highlights from Sunday’s action:
Round 4 Highlights
With birdies on No. 3, 4 and 7, Brooks Koepka pulled into a tie atop the leaderboard with Daniel Berger, who entered the round with a three-shot lead. The best of the bunch was on No. 4, where he drained a 32-foot putt:
Dustin Johnson, who began the day eight strokes behind the lead after a three-over 73, caught fire on the back nine with three birdies and an eagle on a seven-hole stretch to climb within a shot of the lead:
With three players within a stroke, Berger, who bogeyed No. 1, hit a big-time birdie putt on the sixth green to push his lead back to two:
Fist pump.
Acknowledge the crowd.
Hat tip.
The lead is again 2. #QuickHits t.co/OlYuKatnsD
DJ capped his marvelous seven-under 63 and back-nine 29 with an appropriate final shot:
-4 in his final 4 holes.
A back-nine 29 and a dream finish. #QuickHits t.co/aC8FwH4l8i
He entered the clubhouse at nine-under for the tournament, trailing Berger by a stroke and tied with Koepka for second place. However, Berger responded with a birdie on No. 9, extending his lead back to two strokes on the final turn.
After a Berger bogey dropped him to 10-under through 10, Phil Mickelson buried a long putt to suddenly make things very interesting on the back nine:
Wow, what a perfect putt by Phil Mickelson.
Nevertheless, while people kept getting close, the 23-year-old Berger kept responding like a veteran. After Lefty got within one stroke, Berger birdied No. 12 and 14, getting to 12-under and pushing his lead back to three strokes.
The man is on a mission. #QuickHits t.co/6Y2H0Rf3Hn
Koepka didn’t quietly, as he nearly dropped in an eagle from the fairway on No. 17 to get to 10-under, which is where he would finish:
Near perfection from Koepka.
What a shot. #QuickHits t.co/o6OufrAveF
But Berger wouldn’t budge. He birdied 15–he his third in four holes–to run his lead back to three strokes, then gave himself some breathing room with a clutch six-foot par putt on No. 17:
Clutch putt at the 71st hole.
He didn’t need it, though, as he avoided the water on 18 and calmly parred to close out the impressive victory:
Daniel Berger is a PGA TOUR winner!
Congratulations on winning the FedEx St. Jude Classic!
“It’s the greatest feeling.”
The newest PGA TOUR champion talks about winning for the first time. t.co/xdP5FULxzT
Round 4 Preview
Seeking the first PGA TOUR win of his young career, Daniel Berger enters the final round at 10-under with a three-stroke lead over D.A. Points, Steve Stricker and Phil Mickelson.
It’s admittedly a weak field with most of the world’s top golfers resting up for next week’s U.S. Open, but it has still been an impressive showing thus far from Berger, who has hit 15 birdies and only three bogeys.
A chip-in to take the lead by three shots? That’s enough to make Daniel Berger’s birdie on 17 the #ShotOfTheDay t.co/I3ciV4QHj4
While last season’s PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year doesn’t boast a lot of experience in this position, he’s not showing many nerves.
“I just have to be myself,” he said after Saturday’s one-under 69. “I feel like when you’re kind of in this position you can kind of try to do things that normally you wouldn’t do, and (I’ve) just got to have fun out there and be myself and see what happens.”
No one has won the US Open after winning the previous week’s tournament, but it’s safe to say Berger doesn’t really care about that right now.
Comments
Who Won the St. Jude Classic 2016?