Jonas Blixt wins Frys.com Open
Swede Jonas Blixt won his first PGA Tour event with a one shot victory over Tim Petrovic and Jason Kokrak at the Fry.com Open in California
Jonas Blixt beat Tim Petrovic and Jason Kokrak by one shot to record his first PGA Tour victory in the Frys.com Open at California's CordeValle Golf Club.
Blixt, who finished in third place last week at the JT Shriners, shot rounds of 66, 68, 66 and 68 to complete the event on 268, 16-under-par.
The 28-year-old Swede started the final round three shots behind overnight leader John Mallinger, but closed the gap with birdies at the first two holes.
He bogeyed four and five but got back under par with a fine three at the par-4 sixth hole. A string of pars followed until the 15th, with birdie at the par-5 followed by a brilliant up and down for another at the short par-4 17th.
He found the 18th green in regulation but left his first putt some four feet short but, unlike Ross Fisher in Europe, he calmly stroked it home to the delight of his onlooking brother and sister.
"It's unbelievable. I have no words right now. This is the biggest dream I've ever had," said Blixt.
"The weirds thing is I wasn't feeling completely 100 percent about my swing. I just told myself to give it a good hit every time and see what happens. Just focus. You can't do anything better than your best."
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Petrovic, who came into the tournament outside the top 200 on the money list, shot a closing 64 to finish second and give himself a chance of earning a full time card for the 2013 season.
Rookie Kokrak eagled the 17th hole en route to his best finish on the PGA Tour, and looks to have done enough to secure his card for next season.
Jimmy Walker, who shot a course record-equalling nine-under-par 62, was part of a four strong group in a tie for fourth on 14-under-par alongside Mallinger, Vijay Singh and Brazilian Alexandre Rocha.
Frys.com Open CordeValle Golf Club, California October 12-15, purse $5,000,000
1. Jonas Blixt 66-68-66-68 268 (-16) $900,000 T2. Tim Petrovic 70-68-67-64 269 (-15) $440,000 T2. Jason Kokrak 68-66-67-68 269 (-15) $440,000 T4. Jimmy Walker 73-68-67-62 270 (-14) $196,875 T4. Vijay Singh 70-66-66-68 270 (-14) $196,875 T4. Alexandre Rocha 69-67-66-68 (-14) $196,875 T4. John Mallinger 66-62-70-72 270 (-14) $196,875 8. Jeff Overton 68-69-68-66 271 (-13) $155,000 T9. Gary Woodland 66-72-66-68 272 (-12) $140,000 T9. Russell Knox 70-68-65-69 272 (-12) $140,000
Bold signifies Titleist golf ball usage.
Nick Bonfield joined Golf Monthly in 2012 after graduating from Exeter University and earning an NCTJ-accredited journalism diploma from News Associates in Wimbledon. He is responsible for managing production of the magazine, sub-editing, writing, commissioning and coordinating all features across print and online. Most of his online work is opinion-based and typically centres around the Majors and significant events in the global golfing calendar. Nick has been an avid golf fan since the age of ten and became obsessed with the professional game after watching Mike Weir and Shaun Micheel win The Masters and PGA Championship respectively in 2003. In his time with Golf Monthly, he's interviewed the likes of Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose, Jose Maria Olazabal, Henrik Stenson, Padraig Harrington, Lee Westwood and Billy Horschel and has ghost-written columns for Westwood, Wayne Riley, Matthew Southgate, Chris Wood and Eddie Pepperell. Nick is a 12-handicap golfer and his favourite courses include Old Head, Sunningdale New, Penha Longha, Valderrama and Bearwood Lakes. If you have a feature pitch for Nick, please email nick.bonfield@futurenet.com with 'Pitch' in the subject line. Nick is currently playing: Driver: TaylorMade M1 Fairway wood: TaylorMade RBZ Stage 2 Hybrid: Ping Crossover Irons (4-9): Nike Vapor Speed Wedges: Cleveland CBX Full Face, 56˚, Titleist Vokey SM4, 60˚ Putter: testing in progress! Ball: TaylorMade TP5x
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