Merritt: A dream come true
Troy Merritt realised his dream when he won his maiden tournament on the PGA Tour on Sunday afternoon.
The American won the Quicken Loans National by a comfortable three strokes, rolling in a 34 foot putt for an unnecessary birdie at the last, cueing a long awaited celebration.
It was Merritt’s 96th start on the Tour since turning professional in 2008, with just one win on the Web.com Tour to his name before this title. The win comes after no less than five consecutive missed cuts.
The Arizonian had an excellent weekend, as he set the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club alight with a course record 61 on Saturday, only to back it up with a win the next day.
“It’s amazing how you can dream of winning a golf tournament your entire life and you’ve got it scripted and when it happens, you’re not thinking,” the 29-year-old told ESPN.
“You don’t remember what your name is. You’re just reacting. That’s all it was. It was really nice coming down that final fairway with a two-shot lead. Not feeling very much stress, just trying to make as good of a golf swing as I could and, as you saw, it was nice to have only one putt.”
Meanwhile, Rickie Fowler, who’s two under 69 was not enough to catch Merritt, heaped praise on the first-time winner.
“He went out there and earned it today,” quipped the world number five.
“He played some great golf. The score that he put up being in the lead and what he did yesterday, to back it up with a solid round of golf…it’s what you’ve got to do to win.”
Merritt picks up a cheque for $1 206 000 and moves into the top 100 on the official world golf rankings.
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