HOUSTON:
Germany’s Stephan Jaeger held off world number one Scottie Scheffler to win his first US PGA Tour title on Sunday at the Houston Open.
Jaeger took the solo lead at 12-under with his fourth birdie of the day on the ninth, then bogeyed all nine holes on the back nine to emerge victorious at 12-under 268.
“It feels amazing,” Jaeger said. “I couldn’t have dreamed of a better week to do it.
“Obviously, playing Scottie the last couple of days, he’s been on a tear, so to slay the dragon a little bit this week was amazing.
“He’s such a good bloke, such a good player, I was happy to play with him for a couple of days.”
Scheffler, playing in the final group with Jaeger, responded to a bogey at the challenging par-3 15th with a birdie at 16, but missed a five-and-a-half-foot birdie putt at 18 that would have forced a playoff. .
He settled for a two-under 68 that put him in a five-way tie for second place with Taylor Moore, Tony Finau, Belgium’s Thomas Detry and Argentina’s Alejandro Tosti.
Tosti was 12-under after a birdie at 16, but closed with a bogey at 18.
Jaeger, ranked 71st in the world and chasing a first tour title in his 135th start, was part of a five-way tie for the lead to start the day.
After a five-foot birdie putt at the third, he rolled in a 23-foot birdie putt from the fringe at the fourth to maintain a share of the lead.
After bogeying the seventh, Jaeger made a three-foot birdie at the eighth and rolled in an eight-foot birdie at the ninth to make the turn with the solo lead.
Jaeger narrowly missed a 20-foot birdie putt at the 12th, then holed a 19-footer at the 13th. He dropped 16 after his drive went left on a cart path.
Jaeger said patience was “the name of the game” in the potentially treacherous back nine, so he was happy to avoid bogeymen.
“I really didn’t make a lot of bad shots,” he said. “I didn’t feel like I was playing defense at all. It’s just that this game is so hard.”
Scheffler, who birdied the second and third before bogeys at the sixth and ninth, was right behind Jaeger until he missed the green at 15 and fell two over.
The American star parried a shot at the 16th but couldn’t get over the hump — even though Jaeger expected a “100 percent” playoff when he saw how close Scheffler finally came for birdie.
“I had a good race,” said Scheffler, who ended a nearly yearlong title drought with a win at Bay Hill and went on to win the Players Championship.
He was trying to become the first player since Dustin Johnson in 2017 to win three straight starts.
“I felt like I had some weird breaks this week,” Scheffler added. “It’s hard to describe, but obviously I’m a bit disappointed.
“I hit two or three really good shots on 18 to give myself a chance and I feel like I made the putt and I looked up and it broke.
“So a bit disappointing, but Stefan played great this week and is a deserving champion.”
Scheffler said he won’t dwell on his last lost sport.
“It would be one thing if I pulled it or something,” he said. “I just misread it. I don’t know why I misread it, it’s part of the game.”
Tosti emerged as a late threat, shaking off a bogey at the second with birdies at the third, eighth and 12th and grabbing a share of the lead with a birdie at 16. But he couldn’t sink an 18-foot par putt at 18 and closed with a 68.
Detry also posted a 68 while English journeyman David Skinns, playing in the final group with Scheffler and Jaeger, was two under for the day and 11 under for the tournament through 16, but carded the last for a 69 and a share of seventh at 270 .
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