TENNESSEE (AFP) — Lucas Glover parred the first playoff hole to defeat Patrick Cantlay in a playoff on Sunday to win the St. Jude Championship, sealing his second title in as many weeks in the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup playoff opener.
The 43-year-old American, who won last week in Greensboro just to qualify for the playoffs, became the first over-40 winner of consecutive PGA Tour events since Fiji’s Vijay Singh in 2008.
“You work hard no matter what, whether you are fighting something or you’re playing great, because you never know when it can turn,” Glover said.
“It has turned very quickly for me and luckily I’ve been in a good frame of mind to take advantage of it.”
Glover, the 2009 US Open champion, sank several dramatic long putts on the back nine while Cantlay, the 2021 playoff champion, charged late to force a playoff, which began at the 18th hole at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tennessee.
Cantlay’s tee shot went into water left of the fairway. He blasted his third onto the green just inside 22 feet and just inside where Glover’s ball sat after two shots.
Glover two-putted for par, leaving Cantlay a must-make putt. Cantlay’s ball rolled past the right edge and Glover had the victory.
“I was fortunate to get into a playoff,” Glover said. “I said the guns would be coming and they came and I was just last man standing this week.”
Cantlay fired a six-under-par 64 and Glover shot 69 to each finish 72 holes on 15-under 265.
Glover won his sixth career PGA title and became the first over-40 playoff winner since Tiger Woods in 2018.
The 70-player showdown advanced the top 50 in season points to next week’s BMW Championship, from which only the top 30 qualify for the Tour Championship in two weeks at Atlanta.
Four-time major winner Rory McIlroy, last year’s playoff champion from Northern Ireland, fired 65 to share third with England’s Tommy Fleetwood on 266. American Taylor Moore was fifth on 268.
