DeChambeau wins John Deere and earns Open start

Bryson DeChambeau birdied four of his last six holes to win his first PGA Tour title at the John Deere Classic and earn a place in the field for The Open Championship at Royal Birkdale.

Bryson DeChambeau began the final day at TPC Deere Run four shots behind Patrick Rodgers and the 2015 US Amateur champion still trailed after reaching the turn level par for the day.

But he put his foot to the floor on the run for home, carding six birdies in the final nine holes to post a clubhouse total of 266. After birdieing the final hole to move into a tie with Rodgers at the top of the board, DeChambeau took sole possession of the lead when Rodgers lipped out with a par putt on the 17th.

On the final hole, Rodgers needed a birdie to tie but put his approach through the green into the rough. He made a great effort with the pitch but it just missed and DeChambeau had a maiden tour win.

"I show everybody that, `Look. There's plenty of ways to do it.' I do it my way and I feel comfortable doing it my way," said the unconventional DeChambeau.

3 Talking points from the John Deere Classic

1 – Bryson DeChambeau’s win came in his 40th start on the PGA Tour. The 23-year-old has moved up to 34th in the FedExCup standings. He is the 10th first-time winner on the PGA Tour this season and this was the 13th win by a player under the age of 25 on the circuit, that is the most since 1970.

2 – With the victory, DeChambeau secured the final spot available in The Open Championship at Royal Birkdale. He was excited at the prospect, having turned down the chance to play last year as an amateur by electing to turn pro. “It’s pretty special, I’ve been wanting to go for a long time,” he said. “I knew I would be back. I knew I would definitely be back.”

Birkdale Open preview video:

3 – Another man looking forward to Birkdale is Steve Stricker. The 50-year-old produced a great run on Sunday in pursuit of a fourth John Deere Classic title. He got to eight-under on the day through 14 holes but he was unable to make any further ground and a dropped shot at the last saw him finish the week tied fifth. Stricker finished fourth in The Open last year. “My game trended in the right direction over the weekend,” he said. “So looking forwared to next week over at Birkdale.”

John Deere Classic TPC Deere Run, Silvis, Illinois Jul 13-16 Purse: $5,600,000 Par: 71

1    Bryson DeChambeau (USA) 66 65    70    65    266    $1,008,000 2    Patrick Rodgers (USA)    65    64    68    70    267    $604,800 T3    Wes Bryan (USA)        66    71    67    64    268    $324,800 T3    Rick Lamb (USA)        69    70    63    66    268    $324,800 T5    Daniel Berger (USA)    69    67    63    70    269    $189,840 T5    Jonathan Byrd (USA)    70    65    67    67    269    $189,840 T5    Zach Johnson (USA)    65    67    70    67    269    $189,840 T5    Scott Stallings (USA)    71    64    64    70    269    $189,840 T5    Steve Stricker (USA)    73    67    65    64    269    $189,840 T10    Brian Harman (USA)    70    70    63    67    270    $145,600 T10    J.J. Henry (USA)        69    64    68    69    270    $145,600

Note: Player score in bold signifies Titleist ball usage