Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele win Zurich Classic of New Orleans
After dominating the entire week at TPC Louisiana, Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele saw out a two-shot win with a 72 on Sunday.
Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele became the first-ever wire-to-wire winners of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans at TPC Louisiana.
Rounds of 59, 68 and 60 gave the American pair a healthy advantage at the start of the final round and despite a small blip around the turn in Avondale, their level-par 72 gave them a two-shot win over Sam Burns and Billy Horschel.
Having played together in the Ryder Cup and the Presidents Cup prior to this week, Cantlay and Schauffele beat the 72-hole winning record total of 27-under-par previously held by Jonas Blixt and Cameron Smith.
Cantlay, who lost in a playoff to Jordan Spieth at the RBC Heritage last week, is the first player to follow up a playoff loss with a win the following week since Dustin Johnson in 2020.
Cantlay and Schauffele began the day with a five-shot lead over Garrick Higgo and Branden Grace and they extended their lead with a superb eagle on the par-5 7th hole.
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A touch of class.@Patrick_Cantlay and @XSchauffele head to the 72nd hole with a 3-shot lead. pic.twitter.com/xbBMDFWbzi
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) April 24, 2022
They reached 31-under-par but while they looked in cruise control, Burns and Horschel made a fast start with three birdies in their first eight holes.
Things began to get very close when Cantlay and Schauffele made back-to-back bogeys on the 9th and 10th holes to fall back to 29-under-par, while Burns and Horschel made back-to-back birdies on the 10th and 11th holes.
Now the gap was one and we had a game. After a superb drive and putt by Schauffele on the par-5 11th hole, the dynamic duo made another birdie to build a two-shot cushion on 30-under-par.
As Burns and Horschel chased birdies, they could only make pars. They faltered on the par-3 17th hole when they toiled for a bogey and now the gap extended to three shots with Cantlay and Schauffele safely on the short par-4 16th green in two.
The pair bogeyed the final hole to finish on the score they started on in the final round to complete a comfortable victory together. This was Schauffele's first win on the PGA Tour since 2019.
Final leaderboard:
1. Patrick Cantlay & Xander Schauffele -29
2. Sam Burns & Billy Horschel -27
T3. Doc Redman & Sam Ryder -24
T4. Garrick Higgo & Branden Grace -23
T4. Will Zalatoris & Davis Riley -23
T4. Keegan Bradley and Brendan Steele -23
T4. Harold Varner III & Bubba Watson -23
T4. Taylor Moore & Matthew NeSmith -23
T4. Aaron Rai & David Lipsky -23
