Kevin Na sets PGA Tour record with play off win at the Shriners
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Kevin Na defeated Patrick Cantlay in a play off to claim his fourth PGA Tour victory at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open
Kevin Na produced a record-breaking performance on the greens as he earned his fourth PGA Tour victory with a par at the second playoff hole against Patrick Cantlay, becoming the second multiple winner of this event.
Na, who also won this tournament in 2011, holed 558 feet, 11 inches of putts over 72 holes, before seeing in a four-footer for victory on the second trip down the 18th. He was an incredible +14.263 in Strokes Gained: Putting for the week.
“I should have kissed it after I won. I’ll give it a kiss when I get home,” Na said afterwards.
“I feel like I’m a pretty good putter. I’m a player that I feel like I get better as I get closer to the greens. That’s a strength of my game, a part of my game that gets stronger.
“Putter got hot this week. Tends to do that sometimes, and when it does, if I’m hitting it halfway decent I feel like I can win.”
Kevin Na began the final round with a two shot lead, but Cantlay quickly inched closer with a 35-foot birdie putt at the first, but after missing his par attempt from five feet on the third, it was the Las Vegas resident who looked to be in control.
Na made his first birdie of the day at the sixth and immediately followed it up with a second, holing a putt from 27 feet to move to 24-under-par. He dropped his first shot of the day at the par-three eighth, but made the turn three shots clear of Cantlay.
But everything changed as soon as they hit the back nine, and Na’s wayward drive led to a bad chip and a three-putt triple bogey seven, reducing his lead to a single shot after Cantlay’s own bogey at the 10th.
Both players made back-to-back birdies at the 12th and 13th holes and another at the 15th to keep the lead the same, but a two shot swing on the 16th after Na found the water gave Cantlay the advantage for the first time.
His one shot lead lasted only a hole though, as he found the water at the par-three 17th to leave the scores level at 23-under-par with a single hole to play.
The pair shared pars at the 18th to take the match in to sudden death, and Na walked in a 10-foot birdie putt on the first trip back up the 18th to match Cantlay’s, before making the most of a three-putt from his opponent to claim his second victory of the 2019.
Pat Perez finished in third on 21-under, while Bryson DeChambeau and Adam Hadwin both posted eight-under 63s to finish in a tie for fourth with Brian Stuard.
