On Monday, Jimmy Walker lost in a sudden-death playoff against Patrick Reed for the Hyundai Tournament of Champions. Walker got over the lost opportunity at Kapalua with a successful title defense at the Sony Open in Hawaii.
Walker shot 62-63 on the weekend at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu to turn a two-shot 54-hole edge into a nine-shot win. His 23-under total of 267 was a shot shy of tying Russell Henley’s tournament record from 2013. Given how he finished, it was clear Walker didn’t want to leave the outcome in doubt.
“I really wanted to finish out the day today, like I didn’t do last week,” Walker said after the win.
Scott Piercy finished alone in second at 14 under par. Matt Kuchar, Harris English and Gary Woodland finished tied for third another shot behind Piercy.
After opening the round with seven consecutive pars, Walker played the final 10 holes in 7 under par. Walker dominated the second side at Waialae, taking just 20 putts over the weekend, including just 11 on Sunday. For the week, Walker was 13 under on the back nine.
The Oklahoman has not only been great in Honolulu, but in the Aloha State in general. In his last 12 Hawaiian rounds, including the four at last week’s Tournament of Champions, Walker is 61 under par. Pretty good.
Walker can now make the case he’s currently the best American player on the PGA Tour. Since October 2013, Walker has notched four PGA Tour wins, including this event twice. He also has seven other top-10 finishes.
Ryan Ballengee is a Yahoo Sports contributor. Find him on Facebook and Twitter.
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