Straka cruises to 2-shot victory over Thomas at The American Express

Thomas shot a 66 to finish at 23 under, one shot ahead of Justin Lower (69) and Australia’s Jason Day (69) in third. Lower matched the best finish of his tour career.

Patrick Cantlay and Charley Hoffman were 20 under.

Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C., who won the Sony Open in Hawaii last week in a two-hole playoff, finished in a six-way tie for 12th at 17 under — eight shots back of Straka. Mackenzie Hughes of Hamilton, Ont., finished tied for 58th at 10 under.

Hitting greens regularly and putting capably, Straka was three holes away from becoming the first tour player since 2022 to play 72 bogey-free holes in a victory — until he sprayed his second shot on the 16th into the far right rough behind a berm. His third shot didn’t reach the green, and he barely missed a 17-foot par putt.

Straka’s first major mistake made no difference, nor did his next: He put his approach shot into a bunker on the 18th and then missed a 23-foot par putt, but he buried his 4-foot bogey putt and celebrated with a minimal fist pump.

“This golf course, you can’t really let up,” Straka said. “You’ve still got to make really aggressive swings, because you’re one swing away from a double bogey. I think that was the biggest challenge today was keeping aggressive on my targets.”

Thomas, who finished in a third-place tie at The American Express last year, made six birdies on his first 11 holes in the final round to briefly trim Straka’s lead to three shots. The two-time PGA Championship winner ran out of steam on the back nine in his quest for his first tour victory since 2022, finishing his round with seven consecutive pars.

“I had a chance,” Thomas said. “It wasn’t, obviously, a great one on the back nine, but I was proud of myself. I did what I needed to do on the front nine today to at least be making some noise and moving up the leaderboard. It was unfortunate to kind of stall there after 11. Really, really played some great golf today.”

Day, another former PGA Championship winner, has just one victory since 2018. He failed to mount a charge while playing in the final group with Straka, and a bogey on the 15th pushed him out of range. Day shot 69.

Hoffman also was in the final group, and he joined Thomas and Day at three shots back before he put two tee shots into the water on the par-3 13th, eventually posting a triple bogey.

Straka began Sunday in the lead heading into a final round for the first time in his career. He played with confidence early, burying a 12-foot birdie putt on the opening hole. He put his tee shot on the fourth hole inside 13 feet for another birdie, and he added another with an exceptional approach shot at the seventh.

Straka also saved par on No. 5 after putting his drive in the rough, and he did it again on No. 8 after his tee shot dropped in the right bunker.

Thomas began his round with back-to-back birdies, and he added another on the fifth before beginning his charge in earnest with three birdies in four holes around the turn, barely missing a 34-foot eagle putt on the eighth before burying a 16-foot birdie putt on the ninth.

But Straka boosted his lead back to four strokes with a birdie on No. 13 after dropping his tee shot inside 8 feet.

Defending champion Nick Dunlap shot a 68 to tie for 34th at the event where he became the first amateur to win on tour in 33 years.

Sony Open champion Nick Taylor continued his strong start to the season with a 67 to finish in a six-way tie for 12th.

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AP golf: https://apnews.com/golf

Greg Beacham, The Associated Press

by Canadian Press

Straka cruises to 2-shot victory over Thomas at The American Express

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