Sports

Berger’s 31-foot eagle lands him AT&T Pebble Beach win on PGA Tour

Our Correspondent Pebble Beach | Updated on February 16, 2021

Daniel Berger first landed an eagle to catch up overnight leader Jordan Spieth and then delivered two classy shots on 18th for another closing eagle and pull ahead of the field to win the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Berger carded 7-under 65 for 18-under total.

From being two behind of the leader, Spieth, after 54 holes, Berger was tied for the lead with Maverick McNealy (66, 16-under) when he teed off on 18th. A few minutes later Berger ended at 18-under with a final tee shot that was so different from what he had made a day early for a double bogey. This time it was an eagle and he and a deserving winner.

Berger started his final round with a 4-iron to 20 feet for eagle on the par-5 second hole to catch up Spieth. Thereafter Berger stayed in the mix throughout till the last hole for his second win since the PGA TOUR returned to golf in June from the COVID-19 pandemic. His earlier win was a playoff victory at Colonial.

Also read: Johnson in a league of his own, as Woods finds form ahead of BMW

Spieth started with a two-shot lead and was three shots behind after six holes and it was hurtful as this was the scoring stretch at Pebble Beach. He ended birdie-birdie for a 70 and tied for third with Patrick Cantlay (68), who had started the week 10 birdies in the opening round and tied the course record with a 62.

Nate Lashley playing in the final group with Spieth, went to 16 under and was leading by one shot. He was tied with Berger with three holes to play. Then Lashley came to the 16th hole and pitched to 12 feet. He missed the par putt and then missed the next two putts from the 3-foot range for a triple bogey that ended his hopes.

McNealy quietly made five birdies over his last eight holes.

Also read: Johnson gets into the frame as Woods moves out of it in a packed leaderboard

Berger had a 31-footer for eagle and he needed only a two-putt birdie for a win. But the ball fell for an eagle and it was a bonus.

Spieth finished in the top four for the second week in a row, a strong sign that his game is coming back, which augurs well as he is winless since the 2017 Open Championship victory at Royal Birkdale.

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Published on February 16, 2021
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