There’s plenty to go over in our golf recap as the week following The Masters was a busy one around the golf world. There were events hosted by the PGA Tour, LPGA and European Tour as well. There was a pair of first-time winners at the RBC Heritage and Open de Espana, while a familiar face put herself in elite company with a win at the Lotte Championship. Here is a quick recap of the action from around the golf world this past weekend.
RBC Heritage
PGA Tour
The PGA Tour golf recap focuses on a first-time winner. Branden Grace earned his first PGA Tour victory at the RBC Heritage this past weekend. The 27-year-old South African had won 10 times overseas but Sunday’s win marked his first ever win on the PGA Tour. Grace continued his ascent up the rankings with the victory as he is now 14th in the world with three of his seven career wins overall coming over the last two years. Grace’s 9-under 275 was enough to edge out Luke Donald and Russell Knox by two strokes for the win. The other notables included Bryson DeChambeau and Kevin Na finishing at 5-under while Matt Kuchar finished at 3-under and Canadian Graham DeLaet finished at 2-under. Next up for the PGA Tour is the Valero Texas Open this week where Jimmy Walker will be the defending champion.
RBC Heritage Leaderboard
1. Branden Grace -9
T2. Russel Knox -7
T2. Luke Donald -7
T4. Bryson DeChambeau -5
T4. Kevin Na -5
T6. Bryce Molder -4
T6. Whee Kim -4
T6. Jason Kokrak -4
T9. Ricky Barnes -3
T9. Aaron Baddeley -3
Open de Espana
EPGA Tour
Andrew Johnston shot a 1-under-70 for his first-career European Tour victory on Sunday as he edged out Joost Luiten and the home favorite Sergio Garcia with a 1-over 185 for the tournament. Garcia had the lead heading in to the final hole but he closed out the tournament with a double bogey that dropped him two spots to third while Johnston held on for the title. A lot of people were disappointed with that result as you might recall that Garcia was among the favorites to win the event beforehand. He attracted a lot of betting attention as many people figured he’d cash in with the home crowd behind him.
Johnston’s first win in 63 European tournaments moved him to 16th in the Race to Dubai. Other notable finishes included Martin Kaymer finishing tied for sixth at 5-over while Rafael Cabera Bello finished tied for 16th at 9-over. Next up for the European Tour is the Shenzhen International this week.
Open de Espana Leaderboard
1. Andrew Johnston +1
2. Joost Luiten +2
3. Sergio Garcia +3
T4. Soren Kjeldsen +4
T4. James Morrison +4
T6. Alex Noren +5
T6. Ross Fisher +5
T6. Martin Kaymer +5
T6. Mike Lorenzo Vera +5
10. Craig Lee +6
Lotte Championship
LPGA Tour
Minjee Lee captured her second LPGA title when she closed with an 8-under 64 for a one-stroke victory at the Lotte Championship over the weekend. The 19-year-old from Australia went 6-under on a seven-hole stretch that included a chip-in eagle on the par-5 13th and four birdies. That run was enough to beat out third-round leader Katie Burnett and the US Women’s Open champion In Gee Chun, who tied for second. Lee became just the fifth LPGA Tour player to win twice before her 20th birthday, joining Lydia Ko, Lexi Thompson, Marlene Hagge and Sandra Haynie. Lydia Ko’s performance was among the most notable as she finished a disappointing 23rd, which was her worst finish of the year so far. Meanwhile, Thompson finished in a tie for 10th along with a group of four players that included 18-year-old Canadian Brooke Henderson. Next up for the ladies is the Swirling Skirts LPGA Classic this week where Lydia Ko will be the defending champion.
Lotte Championship Leaderboard
1. Minjee Lee -16
T2. In Gee Chun -15
T2. Katie Burnett -15
4. Moriya Jutanugarn -15
5. Su-Yeon Jang -13
6. Joanna Klatten -12
T7. Megan Khang -11
T7. Mo Martin -11
T7. Sei Young Kim -11
T10. Brooke M. Henderson -10
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