Canadian Nick Taylor claimed a four-shot victory at AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am for his second PGA Tour title. The world number 229, 31-year-old, started round four one ahead of Phil Mickelson and finished with a total of 19 under.
He holed to eagle the sixth from a bunker and overcame a double bogey on the 14th to post a two-under 70. Mickelson, trying to tie the 45 PGA wins of Walter Hagen, birded out three of the first six holes but fell to a 74 and ended five shots back in third.
Taylor’s only career PGA Tour win came at the Sanderson Farms Championship in 2014.
“To do it in that fashion, playing with Phil, gives me a lot of confidence going forward” said Taylor, who led the tournament all four days.
Rory McIlroy overtakes Brooks Koepka as No. 1
Brooks Koepka discounted the notion of a budding rivalry between him an Rory McIlroy last fall. “I’m not looking at anybody behind me,” Koepka said at the CJ Cup. “I’m No. 1 in the world. I’ve got open road in front of me … I’m not looking in the rearview mirror, so I don’t see it as a rivalry.”
Although neither of them were in play this week, on Monday the Ulsterman passed Koepka for the top spot in the World Rankings. Koepka’s reign ends at 38 weeks after winning the 2019 PGA Championship at Bethpage Black in May, retaining the No. 1 spot.
This is the eighth time that McIlroy has had with the crown of the OWGR, but first since 19 Sept 2015.
“I’ve been out here for, what, five years,” Koepka explained. “Rory hasn’t won a major since I’ve been on the PGA Tour.”
That reminds us, in 59 days, the Masters begin.
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