Straka outduels Lowry at Truist Championship

FLOURTOWN, Pa. (AP) — Sepp Straka knew early on that precision at Philadelphia Cricket Club was the key to the Truist Championship. Now, the Austrian and the oldest country club in the United States are linked forever. Straka seized the lead with a par on the 16th hole and shot a 2-under 68, outdueling Shane Lowry on Sunday for his second victory of the season. "It's huge, the biggest win of my career," Straka said of his fourth PGA Tour title. After Lowry missed the green with his tee shot at the 212-yard, par-3 16th, Straka hit to approximately 30 feet. Lowry chipped out of the heavy rough but failed to convert a 6-foot par putt, falling a shot behind. Lowry missed a potential tying 22-footer for birdie at the par-4 17th and after driving into trouble at the stout 514-yard, par-4 closing hole, he finished with a three-putt bogey. A back-nine duel had an anticlimactic ending. Straka made a no-pressure, two-putt par at 18 and joined Rory McIlroy (three victories) as a multiple winner this season. The Austrian who played college golf at Georgia also won The American Express in January. "It's not the best ball-striking week I've had," Straka said. "Off the tee the first two days, I hit it terrible." The difference, he said, was putting. He made more than 110 feet of putts in the final round. "The putter was just excellent this week. ... Made a lot of mid-range putts, and that's something you have to do when you want to win a golf tournament." Straka moved to No. 2 in the FedEx standings, gets $3.6 million of the $20 million purse in the PGA Tour's sixth signature event of the season and takes home the winner's cricket bat trophy, a nod to the group of students and cricketeers from Penn who founded Philly Cricket in 1854. He's poised to move into the top 10 in the world ranking and all but certain to make his second European Ryder Cup team. Straka credited his consistency and work ethic for rise in the rankings. The Truist was another miss for Lowry, whose last PGA Tour victory was the 2019 British Open. He won the European tour's BMW PGA Championship in 2022. Lowry's even-par 70 left him in a tie for second with Justin Thomas (67), who made a late run at the leaders. Lowry, who has advocated for a cooling-off period for players before fielding questions from the media after a round, declined to comment. Patrick Cantlay, Jacob Bridgeman and Tommy Fleetwood each shot 65 and finished tied for fourth at 12 under. McIlroy, the defending champion and four-time event winner at Quail Hollow, its usual venue, never really got going and closed with a 2-under 68. Playing in his first individual tournament since completing the career Grand Slam at the Masters, McIlroy shot 68 and was in a group in seventh place at 10 under. McIlroy now heads to Quail Hollow in Charlotte, North Carolina, for next week's PGA Championship, the year's second major. "I think I'm in a good place," he said. "I didn't feel like I played all that well this week, I still finished seventh. A couple little improvements and little tweaks, especially going to a place I love like Quail Hollow, and I feel like I'm in a really good spot." Prime scoring conditions returned to Philly Cricket's Wissahickon Course for the first time since the opening round. After a rainy and chilly second round and a blustery third, Thomas, who was trying to win consecutive starts after taking the RBC Heritage last month, was the only real pursuer in the sixth signature event of the PGA Tour season. Ultimately, it came down to the third-round leaders. Straka built a two-stroke lead after the first nine holes. Lowry broke their tie with a 12-foot birdie putt at the first to get to 15 under. Both took advantage at the par-5 fifth. Lowry made birdie to get to 16 under and Straka trumped his playing partner with a 20-foot eagle putt to forge another tie. After Lowry settled for a par at the eighth, Straka drained a 15-foot birdie putt to go one stroke up and followed with a 28-footer at No. 9 to reach 17 under. Straka's lead was gone after two holes on the back nine after consecutive bogeys. After neither capitalized on the 95-yard 14th, the shortest par 3 on tour — excluding majors — in the Shotlink era dating to 1983, Lowry nearly chipped in for eagle at the par-5 15th and settled for birdie. Straka matched that with a birdie from 6 feet and moved in front to stay at the next hole. Thomas nearly caught the leaders twice. He missed potential tying birdie putts from 14 feet on the 12th and from 3 feet on the 15th. "It was a good day," said Thomas, who returns next week to the site of his first of two PGA Championship wins. "Obviously, I gave myself a chance. Starting three back to have a putt on 15 to tie for the lead, I definitely would have taken that at the start of the day. "I fought hard, played well, and gave myself a chance, which is what I wanted." Sahith Theegala withdrew before the start of the final round, citing a neck injury. The pros spoke fondly Wissahickon course in the tour's return to golf-starved Philadelphia. The century-old course boasted large crowds throughout the week, resulting in the event's fan shop selling out of merchandise on Saturday and being shuttered for the final round. "You always hear about Philly sports fans, and it really is true," Straka said. "I rooted for the Eagles a little bit last year because my Bulldogs had a lot of guys on defense there. Every time I heard a 'Go Birds,' it was kind of fun to hear that." ___ AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf