Staking a 3-shot lead into the third and final round at Trump National, Stenson opened with a 20-foot birdie putt and never let anyone get closer than 2 shots the rest of the way. He closed with a 2-under 69 for a 2-shot victory over Matthew Wolf (64) and Dustin Johnson, who birdied the final hole for a 68. Stenson, five years removed from winning in a field of more than 20 players, took home $4 million for the win and an additional $375,000 for his team’s second-place finish. The big payoff — not including a signing bonus reported to be around $50 million — comes less than two weeks after the 46-year-old Swedish player decided to join the Saudi-sponsored LIV Golf series. Stenson had promised full support to the European Tour when he became Ryder Cup captain in March as well, and the tour stripped him of the job four months later when he changed his mind. 2 Related “I guess we can agree that I played like a captain,” Stenson said on the LIV Golf TV show after finishing at 11-under 202. Asked by the LIV-paid broadcaster if he felt vindicated by the win, Stenson opted not to dwell, replying: “It’s been a good first week.” “It’s been a busy 10 days. I’m extremely proud that I managed to focus as well as I did,” he said. Stenson won the December 2019 Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas, the gala event hosted by Tiger Woods with a 20-man field. Before that, he won the Wyndham Championship in 2017. And while he felt pressure in the final hour, it didn’t always seem that way. Stenson holed an 8-foot birdie putt at the 14th to give him a 3-shot lead with four holes remaining, two of them par 5s. But he took four to get off the left of the green at the par-5 15th. Two holes later, Stenson made a 10-foot putt for par to take a 2-shot lead down the par 5 closing hole. “The putt on 17 was huge to keep the cushion going last,” Stenson said. Johnson has now finished eighth, fourth and tied for second in the three LIV golf events. His team, “4 Aces,” has won the last two times, paying $750,000 to each player. In three events since Johnson reportedly received a $150 million signing fee, the two-time major champion has earned more than $5.2 million along the way. Mexico’s Carlos Ortiz (68) finished fourth, while Patrick Reed (69) was fifth. Phil Mickelson shot an even-par 71, just the second time in nine rounds of LIV Golf that Mickelson has shot par or better. Finished 35th. The LIV Golf Series is closed for a month during the FedEx Cup Playoffs on the PGA Tour, returning on Labor Day weekend about an hour west of Boston, then two weeks later playing in suburban Chicago.
