ATLANTA — Viktor Hovland knew he was playing the best golf of his life. Staked to a six-shot lead Sunday in the season-ending Tour Championship, he figured a steady diet of fairways and greens and plenty of pars would be the safest route to winning the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup.
Xander Schauffele made Hovland change his plans.
And then the 25-year-old Norwegian star performed even better.
Hovland didn’t flinch under a relentless challenge from Schauffele, matching birdies at East Lake Golf Club from start to finish until he capped the best two weeks of his career with his biggest trophy: a FedEx Cup title and the $18 million bonus.
He closed with a 7-under-par 63, the lowest score by the winner in Tour Championship history, and won the tournament by five shots over Schauffele.