A tied 24th place in a PGA Tour tournament cannot be classified as a bad result, it’s clear. But the feeling that this week leaves Jorge Campillo (-15) with his performance at the THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson in Texas is, clearly, of missed opportunity. The Extremaduran golfer has played much better than his final result says. And with having had a little more luck or a little more success with the putter, against which he has been fighting every day at the TPC Craig Ranch, he could have done much of the work he needs to keep his playing rights on the PGA Tour.
This Sunday he was looking for a very low round to rescue at least a top 10 with which he had been flirting throughout the tournament. And although there is no doubt that he could have achieved it by his golf, he had to settle for a round of 67 strokes, with five birdies and a bogey. Campillo subtracted strokes from the field on the par fours of the 3 and 12, on the par fives of the 5 and 18 and on the par three of the 17. And he lost one on the par four of the 16 after sending his ball to the rough from the tee and ending up missing a putt of a meter and a half to have at least saved par. Although his big problem this week has been two very specific flags…
The Spaniard must be one of the few players who have not managed to take any advantage of the short par fours of the 6 and 14. Eight pars in eight holes in which, for example, the tournament winner has made an eagle and three birdies. Jorge, in addition, was unlucky on the 4, where he brushed the birdie with a sensational bunker shot, and he missed a birdie putt of less than three meters on the 2 and another three meters on the 9. A suffering on the greens and some mistakes from the tee at the end where he has ended up leaving his options after a great week with the irons. The good Campillo will have to keep trying, with a schedule that intensifies after the summer.
An unexpected ending with victory for Pendrith
As for the fight for victory, a Canadian, two Americans, two Englishmen and a Swede faced the last nine holes on Sunday with real chances of taking the victory. S.H. Kim (-20), with an extraordinary eagle at the 18, and Byeong Hun An (-20), with birdie to close his round, tried to join this select group at the last minute, but it was already too late. Like the reaction of Aaron Rai (-20), who with a 64 could not complete the huge comeback he had started in the first half of his round and saw stopped at the end.
Neither did Matt Wallace (-20) and Alex Noren (-21), who missed a short putt for birdie on the 18 with which he could perhaps have dreamed of a hypothetical playoff. And Jake Knapp (-19), after a weekend to forget, completely disconnected with two consecutive bogeys on the 12 and 13. So the outcome of the tournament was a matter of two: the Canadian Taylor Pendrith (-23), a real Presidents Cup player, and the American Ben Kohles (-22), with very good manners. Two players without victories on the PGA Tour with a golden opportunity to open their record.
CLUTCH!@Ben_Kohles birdies the 17th to take the solo lead @CJByronNelson! pic.twitter.com/G4qMA3Wryj
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 5, 2024
Before going out to play the last three holes of the tournament, Pendrith had all the chances to win. He led the classification with a one-stroke advantage and after having already been twice in similar situations, in the Rocket Mortgage Classic of 2022 in which he finished second and in the Shriners Children’s Open of 2023 where he was third, he seemed to have the situation under control. But two mistakes from the tee complicated his life. On the 16 he went to the rough and ended up saving par with a putt of more than two meters. And on the 17 he left his ball on the edge of the bunker, in a complicated position to recover, and also ended up making par seeing how his ball made a complete turn to the hole before entering the cup.
Winning is hard.
Ben Kohles went on to make bogey on the 72nd hole to miss a potential playoff by one shot. pic.twitter.com/l6iKCTnj0e
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 5, 2024
Two flags that his rival, Kohles, took advantage of to star in a spectacular ‘sorpasso’. Birdie at the 16 with an iron from the fairway and birdie at the 17 with a super putt from almost seven meters. A one-stroke advantage for the ‘rookie’ with the par five of the 18 to be played. A last hole in which the Texan’s legs trembled and where he ended up giving away a victory that he had in his pocket. Tee shot to the rough, aggressive recovery that ends in a high grass area between the bunkers. Terrible chip that does not reach the green and returns to an almost identical position. Fourth imprecise shot. And putt for par missed from just over a meter and a half. A bogey that hurts.
Winning with family ❤️
A moment @TaylorPendrith will never forget. pic.twitter.com/1SPC6Stn3T
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 5, 2024
Meanwhile, Pendrith, perhaps drawing on the experience that had already seen him in more than one such situation, caught the fairway from the tee, took his ball to the green in two, left it a meter with his first putt and ended with a birdie that gave him the first victory of his career on the circuit, a jump to the 34th place in the FedEx Cup and a boost to repeat in the Presidents. A title that brings him 1.710.000 dollars, which he celebrated excitedly with his wife and son and for which he had to fight, literally, until the last stroke.
