Ancer shoots course record to finish second at The American Express
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LA QUINTA, Calif. – Abraham Ancer used a course record Sunday to put the pressure on Andrew Landry.
Landry once led by six shots during the final round of The American Express, but Ancer birdied three of the final five holes to pull even and force Landry to hit clutch shots on the final two holes.
Ancer’s 26-foot birdie putt on 17 gave him a share of the lead. He burned the edge with his 32-foot birdie putt on 18 and could only watch as Landry birdied the final two holes to win by two. Ancer made nine birdies and no bogeys Sunday.
Ancer’s final-round 63 gave him a 72-hole total of 24-under 264. Landry, who began the day with a share of the lead, shot 67. He made just one par on the back nine, making birdies on the first three holes before three consecutive bogeys. A par on 16 preceded his birdies on 17 and 18.
This was the second runner-up finish of Ancer’s career. He also finished second, one shot behind Patrick Reed, at last year’s THE NORTHERN TRUST. His second-place finish in the opening event of the FedExCup Playoffs event earned Ancer his first appearance in the TOUR Championship.
“All week, I hit the ball great off the tee and iron shots, and in the first three rounds I feel like I didn’t score as low as I should have for how good I hit the ball,” Ancer said. “But I stayed patient and today the putts started to fall in.”
Ancer gained more than three strokes on the greens Sunday.
Ancer, who won the 2018 Australian Open, is still seeking his first PGA TOUR win. He is 16th in this season’s FedExCup after finishing in the top 10 in three of his last four PGA TOUR starts. That includes a T4 at the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions and T8 in the Mayakoba Golf Classic.
“Seeing the ball go in a lot, making a lot of birdies, … definitely gives me confidence,” Ancer said.
Scottie Scheffler, who shared the 54-hole lead with Landry, finished third, three shots back. Scheffler bogeyed three of the first six holes, but was 4 under par the rest of the way. He eagled the par-5 16th. Scheffler, last year’s Korn Ferry Tour Player of the Year, is 15th in the FedExCup. He has top-10s in half of his eight starts this season, including two third-place finishes.
Sean Martin manages PGATOUR.COM’s staff of writers as the Lead, Editorial. He covered all levels of competitive golf at Golfweek Magazine for seven years, including tournaments on four continents, before coming to the PGA TOUR in 2013. Follow Sean Martin on Twitter.