Nico Echavarría (-20) has claimed his second victory on the PGA Tour this Sunday after overcoming Justin Thomas (-19) and Max Greyserman (-19) in a thrilling final battle at the ZOZO Championship. The 30-year-old Colombian golfer steps into a new dimension with this triumph, quite different from the Puerto Rico Open he won in 2023. This is another level.
Echavarría swapped roles with Justin Thomas at the Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club. When it mattered most, in the last six holes of the tournament, it seemed the South American was the one who had won 15 tournaments on the PGA Tour and two Majors, while Thomas resembled more of a contender chasing glory. The golfer from Kentucky appeared nervous, rushed, overly eager to reclaim a victory that has eluded him since May 2022. He played very well from tee to green and left himself closer than his stellar playing partners on average, but the putter, after a great start with three birdies in six holes, froze on him.
The difference between Echavarría and Thomas was on the greens. That’s all. The golfer from Medellín holed out when needed, while Thomas burned edges repeatedly. It’s worth highlighting the determination with which Nico played, with a great birdie putt on the 13th, another excellent one on the 16th after making a really ugly bogey on the 14th, playing the hole very poorly, and a cruel lip-out on the 15th. At the all-or-nothing moment, on the 18th, he played like a champion. He hit a great drive, a spectacular 3-wood that was just 50 centimetres short of reaching the green, and two putts to seal it with another birdie.
Greyserman, like Thomas, will have to keep waiting. He for his first. By the way he plays, it doesn’t seem like it will take long to open his account, but he will have to get used to those situations. He came from behind with a card of 65 strokes and was left at the doorstep. He managed to take the solo lead with a birdie on the 14th, but right there the lights went out. How difficult this is. In the last four holes, he didn’t play well again. He survived without giving himself good birdie chances. He paid the price of someone who has never won and feels that added pressure that tightens the swing.
In another time, Thomas would have won this tournament by a landslide. Rarely did a prey of this calibre escape him. But confidence, self-assurance, is not a switch you can turn on and off at will. He must find comfort in these situations again, return to enjoying being in contention to win a tournament, as he used to. Now, for the moment, he suffers, as if his life depended on it, as if he wouldn’t have another chance in his life.
Echavarría rises to a new dimension and now must prove if he learned anything from his previous victory in Puerto Rico, as the following months were very poor. He missed 15 cuts in his next 17 tournaments and didn’t finish in the top ten again until today’s victory in Japan. Winning didn’t suit him well. He didn’t handle it well. It’s the next trial by fire in his career. Today he has shown he has what it takes to win under maximum pressure. The next step will be to find the consistency to put himself in those situations more often. For now, he gains two more years of exemption on the PGA Tour and will play the Masters at Augusta for the first time. It’s Echavarría’s new club.
