Keegan Bradley wins by three shots over Brian Harman and Zach Blair; World No. 1 Scotty Scheffler shares fourth and Rory McIlroy ends the week in seventh at TPC River Highlands; Bradley’s win was his second of the season on the PGA Tour
Keegan Bradley overcame a wobble on the back nine to earn a second PGA Tour win of the season with an impressive three-stroke win at the Travelers Championship.
The former major winner took a one-stroke lead into the final day at TPC River Highlands and briefly led by as many as six strokes, only to give the chasing pack hope by making three bogeys in a four-hole stretch.
Bradley recovered to close with a two-under 68 and win a sixth PGA Tour title, eight months after his success at the Zozo Championship, seeing him comfortably ahead of nearest rivals Zac Blair and Brian Harman in second place on 20 under.
Zach Blair moved up the leaderboard on the final day with an eight-under 62
World No. 1 Scotty Scheffler finished tied for fourth with Patrick Cantlay and Chez Reavey, while Rory McIlroy shot a final-round 64 to earn a share of seventh place – his fifth consecutive top-10 finish on the PGA Tour.
How Bradley pulled off an impressive win
Bradley quickly seized control of the tournament, following an eight-foot birdie at the third by converting from 12 feet on the next, which was enough to move four over when Chez Reavie missed from six feet and hit the par-three fifth.
Keegan Bradley secured his sixth PGA Tour victory and second of the season
A two-putt birdie by Bradley at the par-5 sixth briefly put him five ahead before Blair followed up with a stunning eagle at the par-5 13th, birdying his next three holes to set the clubhouse target at 20 under.
Bradley was in and out of the greenside bunker at the eighth to fight back for par, seeing him reach the turn in 32, then went six clear when he holed out for back-to-back birdies at the 11th.
The former PGA champion gave hope to the chase when he found water from the par-5 13th and then elected to putt from a mark on the next green, leading to back-to-backs, with Cantlay making three straight birdies on 13 th to cut the lead to three.
Cantlay bogeyed the 16th and failed to capitalize on a good look for birdie on the next, allowing Bradley to maintain control, though he failed to capitalize on the playable 15th and then bogeyed the next par -three.
Patrick Cantlay briefly threatened to mount a late challenge for an unlikely victory
Bradley two-putted the 17th to maintain his three-shot advantage until the final hole, where he sealed the win with a par before celebrating with his family.
“I’m so proud to win this tournament,” Bradley said. “The travelers and everyone involved put on a first class tournament. It’s been like this for a decade and I’m so happy to be a winner here.”
Who else impressed?
Harman birdied four of his final six holes to post a second consecutive 64 and finish on 20 under with Blair posting the worst round of the day, while Reavy – playing alongside Bradley – made the final putt to save one over 71.
Chez Reavie mixed two birdies with three bogeys during the final round
Scheffler also grabbed a share of fourth place to post his sixth consecutive top-5 finish on the PGA Tour, with Cantlay also at 19 under after completing his three-under 67 with two bogeys in his final three holes.
McIlroy birdied five of his opening seven holes but made five consecutive pars to finish the week at 18 under, with Danny McCarthy also five back and Justin Thomas one of four players in contention for a share of the ninth.
The PGA Tour heads to Detroit next for the Rocket Mortgage Classic. Live coverage starts on Thursday at 5pm on Sky Sports Golf.