Adam Long wins Desert Classic
He finished one clear of Phil Mickelson and Adam Hadwin.


Adam Long birdied the final hole at La Quinta to win the Desert Classic by a shot from Adam Hadwin and Phil Mickelson in just his sixth start on the PGA Tour.
Adam Long wins Desert Classic
Adam Long fired a closing 65 in the Desert Classic at La Quinta to claim his maiden PGA Tour title in only his sixth start on the circuit. He finished one clear of Phil Mickelson and Adam Hadwin.
Mickelson led through each of the first three rounds having opened with a 12-under-par 60 at La Quinta, but he struggled with the putter on Sunday as Long made his move.
Long gained his PGA Tour card through the Web.com Tour last season and he has already made the very most of the opportunity. Firing a superb 6-iron to the closing hole at La Quinta, he then holed the 15-foot birdie putt to win the tournament by a shot.
"I got a pretty good read off Phil's putt," Long said. "It was one of those putts that you just stand over you just know you're going to make. And you can't control that, but when you have that feeling it's a good one. I'm in pretty disbelief right now. I don't really know what happened."
At 31, Long is something of a late developer but has now made his mark at golf’s highest level.
Get the Golf Monthly Newsletter
Subscribe to the Golf Monthly newsletter to stay up to date with all the latest tour news, equipment news, reviews, head-to-heads and buyer’s guides from our team of experienced experts.
"In some ways it's been a little bit of a roller-coaster, but it's been a steady improvement throughout my career," he said. " I've played in pretty much most tours around the world that there are and just kind of steadily progressed. It kind of can seem like it came out of nowhere, but my game's been trending in the right direction for really the last two years now."
Mickelson, who opened with a brilliant putting display in a first round 60, was left to wonder what had happened to the flat stick on day four.
"I had a terrible putting day -- one of the worst I can recall in a while," Mickelson said. "Started right on the first hole with a little 4-footer uphill and three-putting that green. And I missed a bunch of short ones on the front and some birdie opportunities, but it felt awful with the putter. I hit a lot of good shots today, but just couldn't get the ball to go in the hole."
Adam Hadwin of Canada finished tied second with Mickelson with Talor Gooch in fourth place and Dominic Bozzelli in fifth.
Desert Classic Stadium Course, La Quinta, Californria 17-20 Jan Purse: $5,900,000 Par: 72
1 Adam Long (USA) 63 71 63 65 262 $1,062,000 T2 Adam Hadwin (Can) 65 66 65 67 263 $519,200 T2 Phil Mickelson (USA) 60 68 66 69 263 $519,200 4 Talor Gooch (USA) 67 67 66 64 264 $283,200 5 Dominic Bozzelli (USA) 67 69 64 66 266 $236,000 6 Jon Rahm (Esp) 66 66 68 67 267 $212,400 T7 J.T. Poston (USA) 68 68 64 69 269 $190,275 T7 Vaughn Taylor (USA) 68 66 69 66 269 $190,275 T9 Patrick Cantlay (USA) 67 66 66 71 270 $159,300 T9 Sean O’Hair (USA) 66 67 68 69 270 $159,300 T9 Michael Thompson (USA) 78 66 65 71 270 $159,300
Note: Player score in bold signifies Titleist ball usage
Fergus is Golf Monthly's resident expert on the history of the game and has written extensively on that subject. He has also worked with Golf Monthly to produce a podcast series. Called 18 Majors: The Golf History Show it offers new and in-depth perspectives on some of the most important moments in golf's long history. You can find all the details about it here.
He is a golf obsessive and 1-handicapper. Growing up in the North East of Scotland, golf runs through his veins and his passion for the sport was bolstered during his time at St Andrews university studying history. He went on to earn a post graduate diploma from the London School of Journalism. Fergus has worked for Golf Monthly since 2004 and has written two books on the game; "Great Golf Debates" together with Jezz Ellwood of Golf Monthly and the history section of "The Ultimate Golf Book" together with Neil Tappin , also of Golf Monthly.
Fergus once shanked a ball from just over Granny Clark's Wynd on the 18th of the Old Course that struck the St Andrews Golf Club and rebounded into the Valley of Sin, from where he saved par. Who says there's no golfing god?
-
How Fast Are The Greens At TPC Sawgrass?
The Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass has some of the fastest greens in the game - here are the details
By Mike Hall Published
-
Charley Hull And Georgia Hall Knocked Out Of Sunningdale Foursomes
The LPGA Tour stars fell short against Tom Shadbolt and Ben Evans in the last 16 of the prestigious contest
By Mike Hall Published
-
Austin Cook Facts: 16 Things You Didn't Know About The American Golfer
Discover more about American golfer, Austin Cook via these facts regarding his life and career in the game so far...
By Jonny Leighfield Published
-
Patton Kizzire Facts: 22 Things You Didn't Know About The American Golfer
Discover more about American golfer, Patton Kizzire via these facts about his life and career in the game so far...
By Jonny Leighfield Published
-
Joseph Bramlett Facts: 10 Things To Know About The PGA Tour Pro
Joseph Bramlett has experienced highs and lows during his professional career - here are 10 things to know about him
By Mike Hall Published
-
Trey Mullinax Facts: 10 Things To Know About The PGA Tour Pro
Trey Mullinax was part of a brilliant college golf team before making his way in the professional game - find out more about him here with these 10 facts
By Mike Hall Published
-
Chris Gotterup Facts: 10 Things To Know About The PGA Tour Pro
Chris Gotterup is one of the PGA Tour's rising stars - here are 10 things to know about him
By Mike Hall Published
-
Hayden Springer Facts: 10 Things To Know About The PGA Tour Pro
Hayden Springer has experienced triumph and tragedy – here are 10 things to know about the PGA Tour pro
By Mike Hall Published
-
Pierceson Coody Facts: 15 Things To Know About The Pro
Pierceson Coody had a brilliant college golf career, and backed that up with almost immediate success after turning pro - here are 15 things to know about the American
By Mike Hall Published
-
Vince Whaley Facts: 15 Things To Know About The PGA Tour Pro
It didn't take Vince Whaley long to earn a PGA Tour card after turning professional, but there's more to the American than his accomplishments on the course
By Mike Hall Published