Jason Day fired a final-round 69 at Quail Hollow Club to win the Wells Fargo Championship by two strokes.
Day entered Sunday with a two-shot lead and that’s exactly where he ended up, aided greatly by going 2 under through the Green Mile that comprise hole Nos. 16-18.
Following four earlier bogeys, Day was tied with Aaron Wise at 10-under par through 15 holes, but back-to-back birdies on Nos. 16 and 17 gave Day a two-stroke lead heading into the 18th where a nifty up and down par-save secured a two-shot win for Day and his second victory of the season.
“Yeah, it’s special,” said Day, when asked to discuss the meaning of the victory.
“I mean, obviously I think I’ve had some tough finishes before with wins and I remember specifically Bay Hill, but this was probably the toughest with how I was driving it out there, you know, hooking the ball in the water on 14 and not knowing what was going on, how Aaron was playing.
“If he was — he birdied 14, but if he was going to birdie 15. Trying to — I hit a lot of great solid putts coming home, but being able to birdie 16 and 17 and just really give my self that two-shot buffer going into the last hole was huge.
“I wasn’t trying to hole it — I mean, I was trying to hole it, I wasn’t worried. I was just trying to get that win.”
Nick Watney, who was paired with Day in the final round, made a long-bomb birdie on No. 18 to move to T2 alongside Wise at 10 under par.
Bryson DeChambeau also made birdie on the final hole to move to 8-under par and secure solo-fourth place.
Phil Mickelson made a round-best seven birdies en route to a final-round 69 to reach 7-under par, good for T5, alongside Paul Casey(71) and Peter Uihlein (71). It was Mickelson’s eighth top-5 finish at the Wells Fargo Championship, the most of any player.
The win earned Day $1,386,000 and 500 FedExCup points, moving to No. 2 in the standings, up 14 spots. He is also projected to move to No. 7 in the world rankings.
TOP 10 LEADERS
1. Jason Day -12
2. Aaron Wise -10
2. Nick Watney -10
4. Bryson DeChambeau -8
5. Phil Mickelson -7
5. Paul Casey -7
5. Peter Uihlein -7
8.Patrick Reed -6
9. Emiliano Grillo -5
9. Luke List -5
9. Charl Schwartzel -5
9. Sam Saunders -5
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“Yes, and obviously THE PLAYERS is such a huge event. It feels like a major to me and I’m sure it feels like a major to most guys. It’s really nice to be able to play pretty solid for the most part of the week. The short game is really nice, it’s rounding out nicely for next week. I’ve obviously got a lot of work to do over the next few days. I’m going to enjoy tonight and obviously enjoy this win, but once tomorrow starts, it’s got to focus back on THE PLAYERS and trying to win that one.”
– Jason Day
Credit: Getty Images, PGA Tour Media
