Canadian Nick Taylor prevails in playoff at Sony Open in Hawaii

The Associated Press

· Posted: Jan 12, 2025 8:52 PM EST | Last Updated: January 13

Nick Taylor ne'er looked much clutch than erstwhile helium birdied the 18th spread 3 times successful the WM Phoenix Open, archetypal to unit a playoff and the past to triumph it.

And past helium went 23 starts implicit 11 months without a apical 10.

Who tin hide that 70-foot eagle putt to triumph the Canadian Open earlier a delirious location crowd? During the adjacent 7 months and 12 tournaments, helium had lone 1 apical 10.

The tradeoff for the 36-year-old Canadian are the trophies — 1 successful each of the past 3 years and 5 overall.

The latest came Sunday erstwhile helium slightest expected it. Taylor, from Abbotsford, B.C., chipped successful from 60 feet for eagle connected the past hole, made a 10-foot birdie putt o enactment successful the crippled and won it with a perfectly clipped wedge to conscionable wrong three feet for birdie to bushed Nico Echavarria successful a playoff.

WATCH | Nick Taylor wins Sony Open successful playoff:

And no, helium wouldn't commercialized them.

"I truly emotion the trophies," Taylor said. "But I would besides emotion to beryllium much consistent."

He plays signifier rounds often with different Canadian, Corey Conners, and their past oddly runs deep. Conners played with him successful the weekday rounds erstwhile Taylor won successful Canada and Hawaii, and Taylor played with Conners the opening 2 rounds erstwhile Conners won successful Texas.

Conners has been a greater exemplary of consistency, with lone 1 triumph since 2020.

"I've played with Corey a batch successful signifier rounds and tournaments. He's idiosyncratic I aspire to beryllium with his consistency. He's phenomenal," Taylor said. "That being said, I truly bask being successful moments and being capable to adjacent the woody and to triumph tournaments is yet what we're trying to do. Again, yeah, consistency. I would emotion to get determination to his level."

WATCH | Nick Taylor's unthinkable putt to triumph Canadian Open successful 2023:

Last twelvemonth was peculiarly discouraging due to the fact that truthful overmuch was astatine involvement — battling for a spot successful the Olympics, and the Presidents Cup being held astatine Royal Montreal with Canadian Mike Weir arsenic the International captain.

Taylor looked similar a shoo-in erstwhile helium won the Phoenix Open, lone to spell into a funk — lone 1 decorativeness successful the apical 20 (tie for 12th astatine Bay Hill), missed cuts successful each 4 majors and a disappointing telephone telephone erstwhile Weir near him disconnected the team.

He besides failed to decorativeness successful the apical 50 successful the FedEx Cup, which would person assured Taylor played successful each the $20 cardinal US signature events.

"Not making apical 50 I knew would marque the adjacent twelvemonth conscionable not wherever I wanted to be. Not making the Presidents Cup decidedly hurt," Taylor said. "I had much myself to blame. I felt similar I enactment Mike successful a pugnacious situation. On apical of that, I had to play much successful the autumn than I had primitively planned and beryllium distant from household a fewer times."

Taylor enactment successful immoderate enactment successful the abbreviated off-season, and was anxious to commencement a West Coast that featured immoderate of his favourite courses and 3 signature events astatine slightest staying (barely) successful the apical 60 successful the FedEx Cup.

Now helium tin slope connected a instrumentality to the Masters and a spot successful each the signature events.

"To person this bully of a commencement is awesome," helium said.

So was the finish.

Taylor was 2 shots down erstwhile helium missed four-foot birdie putts connected the 15th and 16th holes and figured that was his past chance.

But past helium chipped successful for eagle, the leaders down him — Stephan Jaeger and J.J. Spaun — each dropped a changeable and failed to birdie the 18th. That near Taylor and Echavarria, a promising 30-year-old Colombian who has been connected a teardrop recently.

Echavarria, who had immoderate clutch moments of his ain connected the closing 4 holes, had the precocious manus successful the playoff until Taylor made a interaction transportation up a steep slope and made a 10-foot birdie. Echavarria again had the vantage connected the 2nd playoff hole, 40 feet distant connected the fringe, portion Taylor was backmost successful the fairway 46 yards away.

The transportation was cleanable by Taylor. The putt by Echavarria came disconnected soft, stopped 7 feet distant and helium missed the birdie putt.

Taylor's past 3 PGA Tour victories were each successful a playoff — 4 other holes successful Canada, 2 successful Phoenix, 2 successful Hawaii.

"I deliberation I bask being successful those moments. For immoderate crushed my caput gets wide successful those situations of the changeable I'm conscionable trying to hit," helium said. "I've worked connected that the past mates years, wherefore successful those concern americium I bully and the different situations wherever I'm not accordant if I'm successful 30th oregon something. We'll enactment connected that. But bully commencement to the year, obviously."