Wyndham Clark won the CJ CUP Byron Nelson by three strokes after shooting a scintillating final-round 60 at TPC Craig Ranch.
Clark came from behind to pip Si Woo Kim to the CJ CUP Byron Nelson title and he was fully deserving of his win.
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Whenever a player makes nine birdies and an eagle during a final round on the PGA Tour, it’s hard to begrudge them a victory.
However, Wyndham Clark‘s win at the CJ CUP Byron Nelson on Sunday did not pass without incident.
Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images
Clark caused real controversy on Sunday at the CJ CUP after he made two requests in the ninth fairway to receive a free drop from casual water that simply wasn’t there.
The reason why the 32-year-old was pushing so hard for a free drop was obvious, with his ball covered in a thin layer of mud.
What Wyndham Clark was thinking after mud ball incident at the CJ CUP
Golf fans were not at all happy with Clark’s behavior at TPC Craig Ranch on Sunday.
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It was quite clear that he was attempting to gain what would have been an extremely unfair drop.
However, he was rightly refused the privilege of doing so in the end.
Clark spoke to reporters after he was crowned as the CJ CUP Byron Nelson champion and responded when asked about the situation on the ninth fairway.
Photo by Mike Mulholland/Getty Images
“Yeah, I was really angry that I missed that putt simply because that mud ball was very difficult, and then to pull off that really good shot around the green on 9. So it just would have been amazing momentum to birdie there,“ the 2023 U.S. Open champion admitted.
“The nice thing is I had a pretty decent walk to 10, and then I got to the tee, and Stephan went first, which was nice. I said, all right, reset. We’re in a great spot. Just shot 4-under, we can do the same thing on the back.
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“And making a nice two-putt on 10 kind of settled the nerves a little bit, and then I got going again.“
After parring the ninth and 10th holes, Clark caught fire and played his final eight holes in seven-under par. Despite the controversial moment on the ninth hole, he was a more than deserving champion.
How Wyndham Clark feels about his game after ‘heavy fall’ in the rankings
The now four-time PGA Tour winner suggested that a lot of hard work on his game during the off-season was the reason for his return to form.
“Yeah, it’s been a pretty heavy fall since being — I was even up to third in the world at some point in ’24,“ Clark said.
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“Yeah, it’s frustrating, but that’s golf. I went through kind of a tough spurt, not swinging it good, not feeling comfortable with a lot of things, and I did a lot of work this off-season working on my golf swing.
“Then I started hitting it better but wasn’t making the putts. Then finally landed on a great putter, and then everything’s been kind of coming together.
“Needless to say, it feels amazing to be back in the winners’ circle. I feel like my game’s trending in a great direction to continue to have success through the rest of the year.“
Now the challenge for Clark will be to find a further level of consistency moving forward. One thing’s for sure; he will be flying high on confidence now after his dominant victory at the CJ CUP Byron Nelson.
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