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| AP Photo |
VALLARTA, Mexico (AP) — PGA Tour rookie Jake Knapp lost a four-shot lead in seven holes and then held it together with a remarkable short game Sunday, closing with an even-par 71 to win the Mexico Open at Vidanta and earn a trip to the Masters.
Knapp said he still sends a text after each round to his grandfather, who died last year, and this message might require a lot of detail.
He didn't hit a fairway until the eighth hole and found only two the entire round. He never lost the lead, but twice allowed Sami Valimaki of Finland to catch him. They were tied with six holes to play until Knapp took over, getting up-and-down on four of the next five holes, one of them for birdie.
“I woke up in the middle of the night and I could fee my heart racing,” he said. “I was more excited to get things going. I wasn't worried about performing — maybe I should have been.”
Tee-to-green, Knapp had his worst performance. But he spent extra time Saturday night on his short game, and it won the day for him.
“We talked about it last night ... if the ball-striking is off, we're going to have to trust our hands. And we did that, grinding out some pretty tough pars,” he said.
It wasn't easy until the end.
