Matt Jones claimed his second PGA Tour victory at the Honda Classic in dominant fashion, with a final round 68 securing a five-shot shot victory over American Brandon Hagy.
Matt Jones Claims Dominant Honda Classic Win
Matt Jones claimed a dominant victory at the Honda Classic, as a final round 68 meant a five-shot victory over Brandon Hagy.
Jones hadn't won on the PGA Tour since the 2014 Texas Open, but started the day three-shots clear of Aaron Wise, who, at one point during the third round, was six shots clear of Jones before spluttering to a five-over-par round of 75.
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Starting with a comfortable lead, Jones birdied the first and fourth hole, with nearest challenger, Wise, making three consecutive birdies at the third, fourth and fifth hole to put the lead back to two shots.
Both men would bogey the seventh, but Wise would birdie the eighth to give himself a one-shot deficit going into the back nine.
However, that deficit was soon back to four shots as Wise produced a catastrophic four-putt at the 10th hole to fall out of contention.
Despite a hiccup at the 11th, Jones would make consecutive birdies at the 12th and 13th to extend his lead further.
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With Wise dropping further down the leaderboard after a double bogey at the 16th, Jones would pounce by holing a 15-foot putt on the 16th to put himself five shots ahead with two holes to play.
Sinking a tap-in par at the last, Jones secured his second PGA Tour title and a convincing five-shot victory.
Speaking after his round, Jones said: "I've had some tough times between my wins, and I'm pretty emotional because it's been seven years, but I've worked hard. I've had some tough times putting, but I've worked hard with my coach back in Australia and it's payed off.
"It's probably the calmest I've ever been at a golf tournament for four straight days, you can't get a tougher golf course to win on than this one in these conditions, so, to be able to do that on this golf course, is amazing and something I can build on for the future."
Jones' nearest challenger, Wise, faltered over the back nine, with a six-over-par 41 dropping the 24-year-old into a tie for 13th.
American Brandon Hagy ended up finishing solo second, his best ever finish on the PGA Tour. The 30-year-old managed a final round 66 to catapult himself up 16 places.
