HONOLULU — Nick Taylor in a playoff is tough to beat. Getting there was the hardest part Sunday for the Canadian golfer, who delivered another highlight reel of clutch moments at the Sony Open in Hawaii.
Down to his last shot in regulation, Taylor chipped in from 60 feet for an eagle on the par-5 closing hole at Waialae Country Club and a 5-under-par 65 to get into a playoff with Nico Echavarria.
He holed a 10-foot birdie putt on the first extra hole. And then he hit a wedge shot from 46 yards that was close to perfect to set up a three-foot birdie putt for the win. The last shot might have been the easiest swing he had in the final hour.
“I’m a bit stunned this worked out this way,” Taylor said.
That was true for so many others, starting with Echavarria, the 30-year-old Chilean who delivered some big moments of his own with a 15-foot par save, a 12-foot birdie, and twice getting up and down from the bunker at the end for a 65 to join Taylor at 16-under 264 through 72 holes.