GOLF: Gary Woodland captures emotional win at Houston Open

Gary Woodland didn’t just win the Texas Children’s Houston Open on Sunday — he also overcame nearly seven years of personal and health challenges to claim his fifth PGA Tour victory.

Woodland shot a 3-under-par 67 in the final round at Memorial Park Golf Course, finishing at 21-under 259 for the tournament. This marks his first PGA Tour win since the 2019 U.S. Open, following brain surgery in 2023 to remove a tumor.

“I’ve got a big fight ahead of me, and I’m going to keep going, but I’m proud of myself right now,” Woodland said. He also shared that he has been coping with post-traumatic stress disorder, making the victory especially emotional.

“We play an individual sport out here, but I wasn’t alone today. I got a lot of people behind me — my team, my family, and this golf world. Anybody that’s struggling with something, I hope they see me and don’t give up, just keep fighting,” he added.

Woodland won by five strokes over Denmark’s Nicolai Hojgaard, who carded 71 in the final round. Woodland built a commanding lead after going 4 under on the front nine, including consecutive birdies on Nos. 7-9. When Hojgaard bogeyed No. 10, Woodland’s advantage grew to seven strokes.

“Nice to stay in the fight on the back nine and thought if I made the eagle on 16, something interesting could happen the last two,” Hojgaard said. “And then when I didn’t make the eagle, I felt like I couldn’t reach him.”

Rising star Johnny Keefer, a 25-year-old rookie, shot 64 to tie for third place at 15 under alongside defending champion Min Woo Lee of Australia. Sam Stevens finished fifth at 14 under with a 67.

Jake Knapp made headlines with a bogey-free 62, tying the course record and capping his round with a 43-foot eagle putt on the par-5 16th. Knapp said, “I still didn’t drive it necessarily amazing, but was able to control distances and hit it pretty well into the greens to give myself a bunch of looks.”

Other notable performances included Chris Gotterup (65), Australia’s Jason Day (68), and Canada’s Sudarshan Yellamaraju (67), all tied for sixth at 13 under.

Michael Thorbjornsen had a disappointing round, finishing tied for 14th at 10 under after a double bogey on No. 8 and three bogeys in a four-hole stretch on the back nine. He had been attempting to break into the top 50 in world rankings to qualify for next month’s Masters.

Australia’s Adam Scott hit a hole-in-one on the 11th hole, his first on the PGA Tour in 14 years, finishing the tournament at 8 under with a 71.

Woodland’s triumph was widely praised by fellow golfers. “Just really look up to him as a mate who put it out there just a couple weeks ago on television, what he’s dealing with,” Scott said. “It is inspirational.” -Field Level Media/Reuters