To hear Mackenzie Hughes tell it after holing an 8-foot birdie putt to beat Sepp Straka on the second extra hole of the Sanderson Farms Championship on Sunday, it was the only conclusion he could envision.
“I kept telling myself the whole week I was going to do it,” Hughes said after riding a handful of key par saves over the closing holes at the Country Club of Jackson (Mississippi) to have the chance to win his second PGA Tour victory. “That was the only thing I saw in my mind.”
Hughes, who won the 2016 RSM Classic, made a 16½-foot par putt on the 14th hole, a 6½-footer for par at the 16th, then saved par with an up-and-down from more than 100 feet on the 72nd hole to force the playoff with Straka, who closed with 67 as third-round leader Mark Hubbard faded.
“Those par saves down the stretch, I was just trying to will the ball in the hole,” Hughes said. “That kind of describes my game, that grit and perseverance.”Straka, who won his first PGA Tour victory at the Honda Classic in March, is two swings from having three wins this season. The former Georgia Bulldog lost a playoff to Will Zalatoris in the FedEx St. Jude Championship to open the FedEx Cup playoffs and could have won Sunday with a birdie putt on the first extra hole.
“My game is in a good spot,” Straka said. “Giving yourself chances to win out here is the key. The more you can do that, the more comfortable you’ll be. I’m looking forward to having more chances.”
For Hughes, 31, of Canada, it was quick validation of his decision to begin working with swing coach Josh Gregory recently. In search of more distance, Hughes has been putting in more gym time and with Gregory has pursued finding more ball speed. Hughes said he has picked up approximately 5 mph in recent months.
“I’ve been working so hard. It feels so good. I’ve been envisioning that moment,” Hughes said of his fist pump when the winning putt fell in. It’s the coolest feeling in the world. Winning happens so infrequently.”
Ron Green Jr.