Monday 29 August 2016 10:08, UK
Patrick Reed outlasted Rickie Fowler in a tense final-round duel to clinch his first victory since January last year at The Barclays in New York and secure a Ryder Cup place.
The 26-year-old had carved out a one-shot lead over his playing-partner before Fowler's chances ended when he followed a bogey at the 15th with a double-bogey six at the next as his composure deserted him down the stretch.
Reed also bogeyed the 16th, but he had the luxury of a two-shot lead to take down the last and, after being unable to hit the green in two when he pulled his drive into a plugged lie in the bunker, he held his nerve to hit his third to 18 feet before calmly two-putting to clinch a one-shot win on nine under par.
The victory also cemented Reed's place on the American Ryder Cup team, while Fowler must now rely on a captain's pick from Davis Love III after being unable to post the second place he needed to knock Zach Johnson out of the top eight automatic qualifiers.
Fowler, who dropped only one shot over the first three rounds, had started the day with a one-shot lead which doubled when Reed three-putted from 60 feet on the third green.
Both players birdied the next, but Reed pitched in from the rough at the fifth for another gain before finding the heart of the long seventh green in two and two-putting to draw level with Fowler on 10 under.
Fowler's bogey-free streak finally ended at 55 holes on the 11th after he bunkered his approach and failed to save par from seven feet, and Reed jumped into a two-stroke advantage when he converted superb second to eight feet at the 12th.
With Reed now content to grind out the pars, Fowler missed three chances to claw shots back from inside 20 feet at 12, 13 and 14, and his frustration was clear at the 15th when his par putt from four feet lipped out on the right.
Fowler got into further trouble at the next when he pulled his drive into the gallery, came up short with his second and then under-hit his escape and left his ball in the greenside rough, from where his chip raced 15 feet beyond the pin as he ran up a costly six.
Reed settled for a bogey after also finding rough from the tee, but he found the target at the dangerous 17th and, after leaving his birdie putt seven feet short, he rattled in the par save to retain his two-shot lead.
His drive at the last flirted with the thick tangly rough where Bubba Watson lost a ball in the first round, but he was able to splash out from the sand to the fairway and safely got down in three more to wrap up the first of the four FedExCup Play-Off events.
Sean O'Hair emerged from the pack with a superb seven-birdie 66 which propelled him 14 places up the leaderboard into a share of second with Emiliano Grillo, who made three birdies in four holes on the outward nine to get within one of the leaders.
The Argentine faltered with bogeys at 11 and 14, although he signed off with a birdie at the last to cap a 69 which lifted him into sixth place in the FedEx Cup standings.
Jason Day also got himself into contention with three birdies on the front nine, and he piled the pressure on Reed when he holed an audacious 70-foot putt on the 15th which got him to eight under.
But the world No 1 bogeyed the next and settled for a 69 and a share of fourth with fellow Australian Adam Scott (71) and Gary Woodland (69), while Fowler was a further stroke adrift on six under after signing for a disappointing 74.
Jordan Spieth managed to rid himself of the errors that have blighted his cards this week, mixing four birdies with just a single blemish in a 68 which elevated him to five under, but Rory McIlroy slipped outside the top 30 after closing with a 73.
McIlroy's hopes of making an early charge were dashed when he bogeyed the first and eighth, although he got back on track with birdies at nine and 10 and another on the 13th before he also came to grief at the 16th and double-bogeyed.
Another mistake at the last dropped McIlroy back to level par alongside Olympic champion Justin Rose, who birdied three of the last six holes to salvage a 71 after a poor outward half, and he delighted the fans by completing the final hole with his Rio gold medal draped around his neck.
