Keegan on the 18th
In a major filled with unfamiliar names, Keegan Bradley delivered an unforgettable finish. Bradley was five shots behind with only three holes to play after his chip shot raced across the 15th green and into the water, leading to a triple bogey. That’s when he reminded himself that no lead was safe on the final four holes at Atlanta Athletic Club.
"I just kept telling myself, ‘Don’t let that hole define this whole tournament,” Bradley said. Instead, it led to one of the most stunning turnarounds in a major. Bradley made back-to-back birdies, including a 35-footer with a belly putter that rattled into the cup on the 17th.
Then came a monumental meltdown by Jason Dufner. Unflappable all afternoon, he hit his tee shot in the water on the 15th for the first of three straight bogeys that led to a three-hole playoff. Bradley birdied the 16th hole in the playoff—his first outright lead of the day—and went on to win by one shot.
The son of a PGA professional in Vermont, wearing red for his alma mater—St. John’s—Bradley became only the first player in at least 100 years to win a major championship in his first try. The Wanamaker at his side, Bradley took out his cell phone and took a picture of the largest press audience he had ever seen.
“It feels unbelievable,” he said. “It seems like a dream and I’m afraid I’m going to wake up here in the next five minutes and it’s not going to be real.” The final major of the year was hard to believe in so many ways. It was Bradley, a 25-year-old PGA Tour rookie who was ranked No. 108 in the world, who ended America’s longest drought in a major that had reached six. He became only the third player in at least 100 years to win a major on his first try.
Then came the finish—a rousing rally for Bradley, a sad collapse for Dufner. It brought back memories of Ed Sneed making bogey on the last three holes of the 1979 Masters, and even Arnold Palmer losing a seven-shot lead with nine holes left in the 1966 U.S. Open. Dufner played that four-hole finish in 3 under for the week—never once making a bogey—until the final round.
Sunday was different. He made three bogeys in regulation, another on the 17th in the playoff to fall two shots behind, and a birdie on the last hole in the playoff only made the score seem closer than it was. Dufner, now winless in 148 starts, closed with a 69.
Keegan Bradley with the Wanamaker
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