Sam Burns

Sam Burns holed a spectacular off-green birdie putt to secure a dramatic playoff victory over world number one Scottie Scheffler at the Charles Schwab ...

Having initially expected 10-under to be the benchmark, it could have been a nervous wait for an exhausted Burns, but the world number nine was in it for the long game. "The thing a lot of people don't understand is the putting is just as difficult. "It's going to be a fun story that we'll get to have for the rest of our careers.

FORT WORTH — Sam Burns waited a while to win his fourth PGA TOUR title.

When Scheffler reached No. 16, he and Burns were the only players left at 9 under. He and Scheffler, identical in age, are close friends, Burns said. Better to take shorter clubs and aim for the widest parts of the fairways, they say. He ranked second in Strokes Gained: Putting (4.1) in the final round. He made one birdie and one bogey on the back nine. He led the field in driving distance, averaging 297 yards off the tee. He had lunch with his family and kept an eye on the leaderboard. Then he played the back nine. On the 18th tee, Scheffler stepped into his shot at the precise moment one of them rose. Nearly two hours after his round had ended, Burns defeated Scottie Scheffler in a playoff on the first extra hole, No. 18 at Colonial CC. Burns holed a 38-foot putt from the fringe behind the green that veered right and fell on its last revolution. He shot 5-under 65 on Sunday, another warm and wind-whipped day at the Charles Schwab Challenge. Burns finished the final round at 9 under par. He watched the 16 players ahead of him fight the rustling breezes and quickening greens at Colonial Country Club.

Sam Burns made a 38-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole at Colonial, which came just more than two hours after he had finished his round, ...

But his par putt at No. 13 curled off the cut and his drive at No. 14 went out-of-bounds on way to double-bogey 6. Harold Varner III, in contention for his first PGA Tour victory, was in the group with Stallings and also fell out of a share of the lead when he four-putted from just inside 20 feet after the long wait for a triple bogey. After getting a drop from that, relief from standing on a sprinkler head and then even more relief from a temporary sign, Stallings was 43 yards from the hole with a direct line to it. Brendon Todd (71), in the final group with Scheffler, gave up his share of the lead with bogeys at Nos. 11 and 12. During that delay, Scheffler was in the fairway at No. 12 and suddenly back in the lead alone at 10 under. That was even more emphatic than his reaction when he also pushed a birdie attempt 9 foot past at No. 15 and also saved par there. But his approach came up short and he ended up with bogey. It was the third win this season for Burns, and fourth overall in his last 27 starts. After Burns had a birdie chance stop just inches short at No. 18 to finish his round, there were still eight groups left on the course. He had birdie at No. 11, but then had bogey after a wayward tee shot and a penalty stroke. Masters champion Scheffler was going for his fifth victory in his last 10 starts. Scheffler made a good run with his putt, but didn't have a birdie all day.

Sam Burns is having a breakout year on the PGA Tour. Maybe beating World No. 1 (and good friend) Scottie Scheffler at the Charles Schwab Challenge will get ...

With everyone around him blowing over, the tournament seemed to be Scheffler's to seize, and after his many wins this season—four in his last nine starts, culminating at the Masters—there was no question of the pressure affecting him. And yet, after a 66-65-68 start to the tournament, Scheffler somehow put together a round of zero birdies when simply shooting even par would have been enough to win by two shots. A brief bogey hiccup on the fifth hole was the only break in a stretch of six birdies culminating with a nine-footer on the ninth to come into the turn at 30. Varner, perhaps unsurprisingly, was the first to take his hat out of the ring. Insofar as a 65 can be "disappointing" in any way at all, it was a disappointing finish considering his red-hot start. Burns’ major adjustment at Colonial this year was to play more aggressively by hitting more drivers on a Perry Maxwell track that known in recent years for taking the driver out of players' hands.