Talor Gooch wrapped up his stellar play this fall with his first PGA Tour victory at the RSM Classic at the Sea Island Golf Club in St. Simons Island, GA. Gooch bested the field by three strokes, finishing the tournament at 22-under with a four-day total of 260.
The freshly turned 30-year old wrapped up the Tour’s wrap-around season by making the cut in all six events played with three top-5 finishes.
A Breakthrough Win for Gooch
The victory propelled Gooch into the top spot in the FedEx Cup rankings as well as a top-50 player in the world. Once tournament play picks back up after the holiday break, he will get to participate in many of the invitational events and major championships that come with a Tour victory.
Gooch took the 54-hole lead into Sunday and played a flawless final round en route to capturing his first title. He didn’t bogey a hole and hit 16 greens in regulation on the way to a six-under, 64. Gooch became just one of a handful of players to take the lead into the final round and post a score of 64 or better.
Gooch bogeyed only two holes throughout the tournament and added a pair of eagles during the first two rounds to compensate for it.
Hughes Falls Short of His Second RMR Classic Win
Canadian Mackenzie Hughes took home a runner-up finish after opening the tournament with a nine-under. Hughes won his lone PGA Tour victory at the RSM Classic in 2016.
Sebastian Munoz finished third after holding the tournament lead after the first round. The Colombian fired an opening-round, ten-under on Thursday and was three-shots back of Gooch heading into Sunday. Munoz’s high finish moves him into the top-20 in the FedEx Cup standings heading into the new year.
A logjam of pros finished at 15-under, good enough for a top-5 finish on the scorecard. The biggest mover of the final round was Tyler McCumber, who shot the best round of the day at ten-under. McCumber climbed 31 spots on the leaderboard, highlighted by six birdies on the front-9 and an eagle on the back.
Australia’s Cameron Smith, a favorite to win the tournament, Ireland’s Seamus Powers, and American Tom Hoge wrapped up the players at 15-under. All three players made considerable jumps in the FedEx Cup rankings with their tournament play.
Taylor Moore, a Korn Ferry Tour graduate, scored his best finish on the PGA Tour with a 14-under and T8 finish. In five starts this fall, Moore has three T25 finishes. Joining Moore was veteran Webb Simpson at T8.
Rounding out the top-10 were Denny McCarthy and Luke List. The finish was List’s second T10 or better this fall, and McCarthy closed out the calendar with a T15, T11, and T10 to carry momentum into 2022.
Events on the PGA Tour are done through the rest of the year, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be any golf to whet your appetite. Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka will face off in the fifth edition of The Match on Saturday, and Tiger Woods’ Hero World Challange returns to the Bahamas the first weekend of December.
