Germany’s Martin Kaymer outlasted the rain, the 17th hole and a hard-charging Jim Furyk to win The Players Championship on Sunday, finishing the tournament with a 1-under 71 to finish the tournament at 13-under.
Kaymer, the 2010 PGA Championship winner, was at 3-under for the day through 14, but had a lousy shot out of the bunker that became a double-bogey 6 on No. 15. He dodged the water – just barely – on his opening drive on No. 17, the famous “island” green, then drained a 30-foot putt to all but assure the victory.
The finish won him $1.8 million and 600 FedExCup points.
Furyk played as good as any man on the tour on Sunday, shooting a 5-under and playing a bogey-free round. Furyk closed within a single stroke when he birdied No. 16, but parred the final two holes to finish at 12-under.
In all, five men hit double-digits below par. Sergio Garcia was third at 11-under, followed by a tie for fourth between Jordan Spieth and Justin Rose. Rose had a two-stroke penalty removed from his tally on Saturday, but it wasn’t quite enough to get him to the end.
Spieth, the 20-year-old tour sensation, started the day tied for the lead, but after 54 holes without a bogey, he hit five between No. 5 and No. 15 to drop out of the running, finishing with a 2-over 74.
Five players tied for sixth at 9-under including American Jimmy Walker, who fired a 65 on Sunday; Rory McIlroy, who was almost as good with a 66 and Lee Westwood.
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