PALM HARBOR, Fla. (AP) - Adam Hadwin only wanted a chance to win on the final hole Sunday at the Valspar Championship. He could have done without the self-inflicted drama.
Hadwin lost a two-shot lead with one swing on the 16th hole when his tee shot sailed into the water and led to double bogey. The 29-year-old Canadian kept his wits and closed with two pars, the final one good enough for a one-shot victory over Patrick Cantlay.
The victory sends him to Augusta National for the first time, even if it means altering a honeymoon trip to Tahiti. Hadwin is getting married March 24.
Hadwin closed with an even-par 71, and it was hard work to the end. Tied for the lead, and with Cantlay having come up short into a bunker, Hadwin went just over the back of the green against the collar of the fringe. He used the leading edge of a sand wedge to send it down the slope to 2 feet from the cup.
Cantlay came up well short and missed his 15-foot par putt to force a playoff. He closed with a 68.
Hadwin is the third Canadian to qualify for the Masters, joining RSM Classic winner Mackenzie Hughes and 2003 champion Mike Weir.
The consolation prize for Cantlay was a runner-up finish that paid $680,400, more than enough for him to secure full status for the rest of the year. The former No. 1 amateur was playing for only the second time since 2014 because of a stress fracture in his back
Even in loss, it was a bright return for the UCLA star. Cantlay wondered if his back would ever allow him to regain his game, and he endured an even greater burden a year ago February when his best friend and caddie, Chris Roth, was struck and killed by a car as they were walking to a restaurant in California.
HERO INDIAN OPEN
NEW DELHI (AP) - India’s S.S.P. Chawrasia successfully defended his Indian Open title, playing 25 holes Sunday in 4 under for a seven-stroke victory.
Chawrasia completed the third round with a 4-under 68 in the morning and added a 71 to finish at 10-under 278 in the European Tour event. Malaysia’s Gavin Green was second after a 75.
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