Scottie Scheffler took on Billy Horschel in the finals of the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play at Austin Country Club.
Here’s how the match played out, as well as the consolation match between Victor Perez and Matt Kuchar.
Horschel (32) def. Scheffler (30), 2 and 1
Scheffler drew first blood when Horschel hit his tee shot into the native area at No. 2, took a penalty stroke and made bogey. Scheffler had 34 feet for birdie and Horschel opted to concede the hole instead of making Scheffler two-putt for the win.
I’ve just witnessed the most baffling decision, I dare say, that I’ve seen in match play. Billy Horschel concedes a 2 putt win of a hole to Scheffler from 34’6” Once player gets outside 32 feet they are more likely to 3 putt than 1 putt. Even more likely on a breezy day.
— Brandel Chamblee (@chambleebrandel) March 28, 2021
At the par-4 fifth, both men pulled their tee shots and both got lucky breaks with their balls ricocheting off trees and into the fairway.
Scottie Scheffler and @BillyHo_Golf both caught breaks at the 5th 🤔pic.twitter.com/EgAD2yXDhL
— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) March 28, 2021
Horschel missed the green right, but chipped in for birdie to tie the match.
Up and down? How about in. 😎@BillyHo_Golf ties it up!pic.twitter.com/XqIJb0shoF
— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) March 28, 2021
Scheffler scrambled to save par at the sixth and tie the hole, but couldn’t do so at the seventh, giving Horschel his first lead of the match, at 1 up. Another Scheffler bogey at the ninth put Horschel 2 up at the turn.
Despite putting his second shot in the water at the par-5 12th, Scheffler had an 11-foot par putt to win the hole but missed on the high side. The 24-year-old Texan failed on another opportunity at the 14th, when he missed a 9-footer for birdie to win the hole.
Considering Scheffler’s birdie at the second was given and Horschel chipped in for birdie at the fifth, there were no birdie putts made in this match. It was, of course, their seventh match in five days.
Fortunately for Horschel, he never needed to make one. After halving the 15th and 16th holes in par, Scheffler needed to make a 10-footer for birdie at the par-3 17th to stay alive. He missed, giving Horschel his sixth career PGA Tour title.
WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play: Full bracket | Scoring
Kuchar (52) def. Perez (31), 2 and 1
Kuchar won the first hole with a bogey, when Perez opened with a double, and he never trailed. Kuchar, who didn’t make a birdie in his semifinal loss to Scottie Scheffler, finally notched one on the fourth hole against Perez and added three more to go 4 up through 12.
The Frenchman, who needed to win in order to earn Special Temporary membership on Tour, battled back with birdies at Nos. 13 and 14 to cut his deficit to 2 down with four to play, but that’s as close as he would get. The two parred Nos. 15, 16 and 17 to give Kuchar a win (2013), a runner-up (2109) and his second third-place showing (2011) in this event.