Three aces caught our attention as August drew to a close. Henrik Stenson tallied one in Sweden, Chez Reavie posted his in Atlanta, and Fred Couples slapped one home in Washington state. None of the perfect shots resulted in victory; this week’s winners had to dig much deeper to find gold. The PGA Tour celebrated the last event of the playoffs, while the Korn Ferry Tour drew one step closer to its grand finale. The LPGA traveled north of Toronto for Canada’s national championship, while the European Tour visited Sweden. Dig into a slice of pie from each of five professional tours in this week’s rundown. It’s tasty!

Tour Championship flies away with Rory McIlroy

The inaugural playing of the performance-handicapped Tour Championship should be deemed a successful experiment. For the first time in Tour history, players began an event with an advantage or a disadvantage. Justin Thomas began the week at 10-under par, thanks to his previous performance. If he had found a method to go 9-under during the week, he would have won. Same, almost, for Brooks Koepka. He began at -7, but could only add 6 strokes to his bonus start. Rory McIlroy, on the other hand, tacked a whopping 13 strokes onto his -5 starting gate, and finished at -18 for the week. This performance, featuring four rounds in the 60s, brought him his 2nd almost-major of the season.

McIlroy played wonderful golf for most of the final round. He stood -4 on the day, with a clear path to victory. Consecutive bogies at 14 and 15 dropped him to 16-under, and the door was left slightly ajar for his pursuers. The gifted one steadied himself with birdies at the final 2 holes, and a 4-stroke margin of victory was restored. Xander Schauffele closed with 70 for second spot, and the aforementioned Thomas tied Koepka for 3rd place. The PGA Tour will take the month of September off, then resume in early October with the 1st tournament of 2019-20 at the Safeway Open in Napa, California.

Scandinavian Invitation to gutsy Van Rooyen

Erik Van Rooyen, let’s be honest, has let some European Tour victories slip through his hands. In May, however, a switch might have flipped for the South African at, of all places, Bethpage Black. While Koepka received all the attention for his march to victory, EVR quietly secured an 8th place finish, his first top-ten in a major. On Sunday, Van Rooyen birdied the 18th hole for a 4th-consecutive day, moving from 18 to 19-under par and seizing his first European Tour title. Left in dismay was England’s Matthew Fitzpatrick, whose Sunday 64 was simply not enough to beat EVR’s 128 weekend. England’s Sam Horsfield had the low round of the day, a 62 that featured 8 birdies and moved him from 43rd to a tie for 10th. Sweden’s Stenson aced the 6th hole, but had an 8-hole run of pars that left him in a tie for 3rd with Dean Burmester.

Canadian Open confirms Ko’s 2019 dominance

A perceptive commentator on The Golf Channel drew a parallel between 2018’s “It Girl,” Ariya Jutanugarn, and Jin Young Ko. The reference painted an 11-month trace of top-shelf play and tournament effectiveness. Ko began Sunday in a tie with Denmark’s Nicole Broch Larsen, with defending champion Brooke Henderson not far behind. The leaders battled over the outward half, each standing 2-under on the day as they reached the 10th tee. NBL made bogey at the 10th, her first mistake of the day, and Ko took full control of the day. The Korean champion, winner already this year in Phoenix, Rancho Mirage and Evian, made birdie for a 2-shot advantage, and pushed the accelerator to the floor. She added 5 more birdies on the inward half for a 5-shot triumph over the Dane. Lizette Salas closed furiously with 64, earning a tie for 3rd spot with Henderson, who would have needed 62 on the day to earn a playoff with Ko.

NeSmith earns promotion to PGA Tour in Boise Open thriller

Each week of the Korn Ferry Tour playoffs is like an Oprah giveaway: you get a PGA Tour card, and you, and you! This week, it was the mildly-heralded Matthew NeSmith who vaulted past 3rd-round leader Viktor Hovland to victory and a promotion for next season. NeSmith stuffed a wedge in close at the last, then converted the birdie putt to reach 19-under par. Moments prior, Brandon Hagy had closed with 2 birdies to take the clubhouse lead, but it was short lived. Hagy finished in a tie for 2nd, securing playing privileges for 2019-2020 on the big tour. The only golfer with a chance to catch NeSmith was Hovland, who struggled to preserve a 3rd round lead for the 2nd time this month. Hovland had 6 birdies on the day, but could not avoid a trio of bogeys that ultimately cost him the tournament. Needing eagle at the last, the former Oklahoma State golfer nearly holed his wedge from the fairway. Birdie from three feet earned him a tie for 2nd place and a promotion of his own. The season concludes next week in Indiana, as the KFT holds its own Tour Championship, with a few more, guaranteed Oprah moments.

Brandt Jobe bursts out for 2nd Champions Tour win at Boeing

Ask Brandt Jobe what it’s like to open a round with five birdies, and he’ll probably say it’s just as easy to bogey hole number six. That’s what happened on Sunday at Snoqualmie Ridge. The Oklahoma native made birdie at 8 and 9 to turn in 30, just as 3rd-round leader Fred Couples began his 4th-round struggle. Couples birdied the first hole to reach -17-under par, but that was it for the home-state hero. He dropped into a tie for 3rd with Jerry Kelly after adding 13 shots on Sunday, to his 2nd-round 63. Jobe, meanwhile, taped 3 more birdies to the board on the inward half, signed for a 63 of his own, and walked off the 18th green with his 15th career victory, and 2nd on the Champions Tour. Sneaking into 2nd place was Tom Pernice, Jr., who birdied 9 holes on Sunday. Pernice had 65 on the day to earn his best finish since April, when he and Scott Hoch partnered to win the Bass Pro Shops team event. With the victory, Jobe jumped 10 spots on the Schwab Cup money list, entering the top 15 for the first time this season.

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