Georgia alum Kevin Kisner wins Dean & DeLuca Invitational
It was not the most enviable of groups for Kevin Kisner to be holding a one shot lead over.
On the 18th hole at Colonial Country Club during the Dean & DeLuca Invitational, there was Kisner, needing par to hang on to his slim lead over PGA Tour darling Jordan Spieth, the white-hot Jon Rahm, and a major winner in Webb Simpson.
And just when it looked like Kisner might succumb to that pressure, spraying his drive to the right, missing the green with his second, leaving his lag putt from off the green a good five feet from the hole, he delivered. Kisner drained his five-foot putt for the win, his second on Tour.
“I’m just honored to be the champion here,” said Kisner, who shot 66 for the day and a 10-under 270 for the tournament. “To come back here every year and see my name on that wall is going to be special.”
The clutch par putt that officially clinched the @DeanDeLucaInv title for @K_Kisner. pic.twitter.com/ydrCPgKg6C
— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) May 28, 2017
This year has been good to Kisner. He opened 2017 with a fourth-place finish at the Sony Open in Hawaii, and finished in the top-25 in five of his next six events. He nearly broke through at the Zurich Classic in April, roaring to second after shooting a 60 on the final day.
But that preceded a missed cut and then a disappointing 56th at The Players, widely considered to be golf’s “fifth major.”
It’s odd that consecutive listless displays would precede the first win of the season for Kisner, a Georgia alum, but a similarly strange run preceded fellow SEC member Billy Horschel (Florida) when he won the Byron Nelson just a week ago.
