Svensson secures first PGA Tour success

Adam Svensson has handled the cold air and the heat of contention as if he had been there before, closing with a six-under 64 to win the RSM Classic at Sea Island for his first PGA Tour victory.

Svensson, a 28-year-old Canadian, was locked in a four-way tie for the lead on the closing stretch of the Seaside course when he poured in an 18-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole, and then hit a tee shot to 10 feet on the par-3 17th for a birdie that gave him a cushion.

Brian Harman (65) and Sahith Theegala (66) were in the group ahead of him and missed birdie chances from about 25 feet on the closing hole.

Callum Tarren of England (64) was the first to post at 17-under par and was hopeful of a playoff. Svensson capped off his bogey-free final round with a par for a two-shot win.

He finished at 19-under 263 and played the tougher Seaside course in 20 under the final three rounds. His tournament began with a 73 on the Plantation, which put him in a tie for 108th. His first job was to make the cut. He wound up winning the trophy.

Svensson is starting his third full year on the PGA Tour and gets a two-year exemption, along with a trip to the Masters and the PGA Championship. He has never played a major.

“To be honest, it’s not even real right now,” Svensson said.

“I’m so happy. I put so much work in. To win on the PGA Tour means everything to be me … I just kept believing in myself, and here I am.”

Patrick Rodgers and Ben Martin, who shared the 54-hole lead, couldn’t keep up. Rodgers didn’t make his first birdie until the 13th hole and closed with a 70 to tie for 10th, while Martin shot a 72.

Aaron Baddeley, the only one of five Australian starters to make the weekend cut, finished in a tie for 39th at nine under after a final-round 68.

The PGA Tour now takes a six-week break in the final wraparound season before resuming with the Sentry Tournament of Champions at Kapalua the first week of January.

By winning, Svensson was the last man to qualify for that field, the first elevated event that will have a $US15 million ($A23m) purse.

Svensson won $US1,458,000 ($A2.2m), more than he won in either of his two previous seasons on the PGA Tour. He is the second Canadian to win this season, joining Mackenzie Hughes, who triumphed in Mississippi.