Billy Horschel had not won an individual strokeplay event since the 2017 AT&T Byron Nelson. But he had won twice in the past year and change, in fact. And he showed the mettle of a champion despite his game being off during the final round of the Memorial Tournament to snare PGA Tour win No.7.

Coming into Sunday with just one bogey over 54 holes, Horschel produced three against a birdie and an eagle during the final round which proved to be enough to hold off Aaron Wise. Not that much came easy over the final 13 holes starting with a bogey at the sixth hole.

Horschel made a big up and down on par-3 eighth to stay three shots clear of Wise then knocked a 9-iron to eight feet on the 10th and made the putt to stretch the lead to four shots over Joaquin Niemann and Wise. Another key up-and-down on the 11th saved par and was followed by a critical up and down from 93 metres on the 13th to regain a three-shot advantage. Then, after a wedge shot from Wise nearly found the cup on the par-5 15th, Horschel, who hit a 5-wood from 219 metres onto the back of the green, 53 feet away, drained the putt for eagle with his Ping Sigma 2 Tyne 4 mallet, effectively ending things.

Horschel wasn’t long off the tee, but he was straight (ranking 14th in driving accuracy with his Titleist TSi3 driver), a must to avoid Muirfield Village’s penal rough. From there he was mostly on target, leading the field in greens in regulation with his Titleist 620 MB irons with True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 shafts and Golf Pride Tour Velvet grips (along with some old-school lead tape on the back). He also converted 16 of 18 scrambling opportunities to lead the field as well, the bulk of that work coming from a Titleist Vokey WedgeWorks prototype wedge with a V grind that Horschel has bent from 60 to 62 degrees. According to Titleist, the V Grind is for players seeking a dual bounce wedge with increased bounce on square face shots, and enhanced relief for open-faced shots.

And for players seeking their first individual strokeplay win in five years.

The clubs Billy Horschel had in the bag at the 2022 Memorial Tournament:

Ball: Titleist Pro V1

Driver: Titleist TSi3 (Fujikura Ventus Black 6X) 8 degrees

3-wood: Titleist TSi2, 15 degrees

5-wood: Titleist TSi2, 18 degrees

Irons (3): Titleist 620 CB; (5-PW): Titleist 620 MB

Wedges: Titleist Vokey SM9 (52, 56 degrees); Titleist Vokey WedgeWorks (60 degrees)

Putter: Ping Sigma 2 Tyne 4

PHOTO: Sam Greenwood