This week’s 2024 Valero Texas Open is the oldest professional golf tournament to be held in the same city for its entire existence. In 2022, the Valero Texas Open celebrated its 100th anniversary.
It could also be called “The Last Chance Open” as it’s the last chance to earn a ticket to the Masters with a win.
The Texas Open has a total prize purse of $9,200,000. The winner will scoop the top prize of $1,656,000.
Round 1
It was obvious that one player in the 144-player field had taken the first step toward a potential trip to Augusta National. Akshay Bhatia produced a 9-under 63 on Thursday to claim a three-shot lead.
Both Brendon Todd and Justin Lower were tied for second on 6 under. Interestingly, none of the three had yet to qualify for the Masters.
During Thursday’s opening round, Jordan Spieth was sitting 4-over with three holes to play. Then came the par-3 16th. His perfect tee shot from 199 yards resulted in a hole-in-one. It also earned him a new Lexus.
Round 1: Top 3
Pos-Player-Score (Rd 1)
1. Akshay Bhatia -9 (63)
2. Justin Lower -6 (66)
2. Brendon Todd -6 (66)
Round 2
Heading into the weekend, Akshay Bhatia (70) was 11-under par, five shots clear of the field at the TPC Oaks Course in San Antonio. Denny McCarthy (70), Brendon Todd (72), and Russell Henley (69) were the closest chasers at 6 under.
Nine players, who have already qualified for the Masters, missed the cut: Rickie Fowler, Byeong Hun An, Eric Cole, Harris English, Ryan Fox, Lee Hodges, Zach Johnson, Grayson Murray, Erik van Rooyen, and Camilo Villegas.
Round 2: Top 3
Pos-Player-Score (Rd 2)
1. Akshay Bhatia -11 (-2)
2. Russell Henley -6 (-3)
2. Denny McCarthy -6 (-2)
2. Brendon Todd -6 (E)
Round 3
Akshay Bhatia shot a 4-under 68 to sit 15-under par, four shots ahead of the chasing pack. Bhatia’s lead was the largest in the last 20 years at the Texas Open.
Denny McCarthy (67) was 11-under and the only player who managed to stay relatively close to Bhatia.
When asked about his chances of winning the Texas Open, Bhatia said: “Just, you know, if I win, that’s great. I mean, it gets me closer to my goal.
“Yeah, it doesn’t mean the world to me. I didn’t grow up playing on the PGA Tour necessarily to win just PGA Tour events, I grew up playing and dreaming of winning majors. That’s kind of my main focus for the years to come.”
McCarthy, who has never won on the PGA Tour, makes his Augusta National debut next week by virtue of a top-50 position in the Official World Golf Rankings.
The former University of Virginia star was asked about his chances to catch Bhatia: “There’s no pressure he’s playing really good golf I know I’m going to have to go out and play another solid round of golf. I’m looking forward to the challenge tomorrow I’m going to go out and try to play some free golf.”
Round 3: Top 3
Pos-Player-Score (Rd 3)
1. Akshay Bhatia -15 (-4)
2. Denny McCarthy -11 (-5)
2. Brendon Todd -8 (-2)
Final Round
With a final-round 67, Akshay Bhatia claimed his second PGA Tour title and punched his ticket to the 2024 Masters Tournament.
The 22-year-old finished with a 20-under total. It’s a simple headline to write but how he pulled it off is a little more complicated.
Heading to the back nine on Sunday afternoon, Bhatia was enjoying a seemingly insurmountable six-stroke lead over his closest competitor, Denny McCarthy.
Simple enough, you say?
What looked like just another Sunday at the Texas Open, quickly turned into a “shootout” on the TPC Oaks course’s homeward nine as McCarthy was about to change this day into one for the record books.
At first, the Maryland native looked to have lost all hope of making the Texas Open his first PGA Tour victory when he found himself falling back to 6 under heading to the 10th tee. A two-shot swing on the 10th, though, moved him to within four strokes of lead. Bhatia quickly got one back with a birdie on No. 11 and just like that it was back to a five-shot advantage with just seven to play.
McCarthy then went on a record-setting heater, reeling off seven straight birdies (Nos. 12-18) to close with a 28. McCarthy’s final-hole gain even saw Bhatia briefly fall out of the lead for the first time since early on Thursday morning. The young lefty, though, made his own birdie on 18 to keep the match tied and force overtime.
Akshay played the first extra hole with a shoulder injury he’d sustained during his 18th hole birdie celebration in regulation. After two solid shots by both players, an errant third stroke by McCarthy coupled with a near-perfect approach to 8 feet for Bhatia brought a quick end to a “crazy” ending.
NBC Reporter Don Hack caught up with Bhatia as he was celebrating on the 18th green. He asked, “You slept on the lead for three nights in the row. Denny McCarthy threw a 28 at you on that back nine. Where are you most proud of and how you handled everything that came your way this week?”
Bhatia replied, “Yeah, I just stuck to my game plan. I played great today. I kind of got the goal that I had in mind today and Denny played unbelievable. I mean you got to give him credit. It’s hard because he’s one of the best players out here and when you see him get hot, it’s scary.
“You know, because I had a six-shot lead going to the back nine then all of a sudden, we’re tied going into 18. So then, of course, he makes that putt and man what a crazy, crazy day.”
Bhatia earned $1.656 million for his victory along with a trip to the Masters. McCarthy took home $1.0028 million.
Rory McIlroy shot a final-round 66 and scored a back door third-place finish, nine shots behind Bhatia and McCarthy. McIlroy earned $634,800.
Final Round: Top 3
Pos-Player-Score (Final Rd)
1. Akshay Bhatia -20 (-5)*
2. Denny McCarthy -20 (-9)
3. Rory McIlroy -11 (-6)
* Won in playoff
