As we’ve seen on multiple occasions on the US PGA Tour lately, as recent as last week at the Wells Fargo Championship, it’s not exaggerating to say anyone in the field can win. All it takes is one good week for it all to come together. Just ask Max Homa, whose win at Quail Hollow came two seasons after he missed 15 of 17 cuts on tour in 2017.
Unlike Homa, though, Sung Kang came quite close to breaking through in his previous 158 starts on tour, collecting four top-three finishes in his career, including a runner up at the 2017 Shell Houston Open. If the 31-year-old from South Korea kept plugging away, his time would come too.
It did come today at Trinity Forest Golf Club, where Kang carded a final-round 67 to edge out Scott Piercy and Matt Every by two shots to win the AT&T Byron Nelson. Kang, who permanently moved to the Dallas area in 2011, was stagnant early in the final round, playing his first seven holes in even-par and briefly losing the lead to Every. But he recovered by making six birdies and two bogeys on his final 11 holes to come out on top.
“Yesterday we finished too late,” said Kang, referring to the Saturday night finish after a seven-hour rain delay, which forced him and the leaders to return to the course early on Sunday to finish their third rounds.
“I didn’t have time to sleep much, only slept about three hours. So I talked to my caddie – I can’t really be fully focused for a whole 18 holes, so I just wanted to be chill and having some fun and then when my turn came just try to really focus in and it worked out great. I’m so happy right now.”
Every, who has not won on tour since 2015 at Bay Hill, challenged Kang early, making five birdies on his first six holes to take a one-shot lead. But he made just two more birdies and a bogey on his remaining 12 holes. Piercy played as well as he could have, firing rounds of 63 and 64 to close out his week, but still came up short. While it didn’t result in a victory, Piercy remarkably finished all 72 holes without making a bogey, something that hadn’t been done since Charles Howell III did it at the 2010 Greenbrier.
Brooks Koepka, who shot a six-under 65, finished alone in fourth. Best of the Australians was Matt Jones, who closed with a 67 to share fifth place.
