LA QUINTA, Calif. — Sepp Straka won the American Express by two shots over Justin Thomas on Sunday, completing his third PGA Tour victory at 25-under 263 with a final-round 70.
Straka, the first Austrian to win on tour in three years, cruised to victory after taking a four-shot lead into the final round of the Coachella Valley tournament. He didn’t have a bogey in the four-day event until he made two of the last three holes, but his opponents couldn’t charge to make him uncomfortable.
Straka, 31, looked cool and collected on PGA West’s Stadium Course — but he wasn’t.
“Emotions, absolute emotions,” Straka said. “Stomach in knots, the whole nine. So, yeah, I’m really happy with how I handled the pressure today.”
Thomas shot a 66 to finish at 23 under, one shot ahead of Justin Lower (69) and Australia’s Jason Day (69) in third place. The low matched the best finish of his touring career.
Patrick Cantlay and Charley Hoffman were under 20.
Hitting the greens consistently and consistently, Straka was three holes from becoming the first tour player since 2022 to play 72 holes for bogey in the win — until he blew his second shot on the 16th in a difficult spot right behind the berm. His third shot missed the green, and he missed a 17-foot par putt.
Straka’s first big mistake didn’t make a difference, and neither did his next one: He holed his approach on the 18th and missed a 23-foot par putt, but buried his 4-foot bogey putt and celebrated with a little pump. of boxing. .
“This golf course, you can’t really quit,” Straka said. “You still have to make some really aggressive swings, because you’re coming off a double bogey. I think that was the biggest challenge today was keeping my goals.”
Thomas, who finished third at The American Express last year, made six birdies in his first 11 holes in the final round to cut Straka’s lead to three shots. The two-time PGA Championship winner lost steam on the back nine in his bid for his first tour win since 2022, ending his round with seven consecutive pars.
“I had a chance,” said Thomas. “Obviously it wasn’t great on the back nine, but I was proud of myself. I did what I had to do earlier today to at least make some noise and move up on the leaderboard. I’m just unlucky to have that kind of sell-off there after 11. Really, I played really good golf today.”
Day, another former PGA Championship player, has won just once since 2018. He failed to make the cut in the final round with Straka, and a bogey on the 15th put him out. 69 day gun.
Hoffman was also in the final group, and joined Thomas and Day in three shots before he put two tee shots in the water on the par-3 13th, eventually posting a triple bogey.
Straka started Sunday with the lead going into the final round for the first time in his career. He played with confidence early, burying a 12-foot birdie putt on the opening hole. He putt his shot on the fourth hole to within 13 feet for another birdie, and added another on a different shot at the seventh.
Straka also saved the No. 5 after putting his drive into the rough, he did it again on No. 8 after his gun fell into the right chamber.
Thomas started his round with back-to-back birdies, and added another fifth before beginning his charge in earnest with three birdies in four holes on the turn, then missed a 34-foot eagle putt on the eighth before burying the 16th. -foot birdie putt on the ninth.
But Straka extended his lead back to four strokes with a birdie on No. 13 after dropping his shot to within 8 feet.
Defending champion Nick Dunlap shot a 68 to tie for 34th in the event where he became the first unseeded player to win on tour in 33 years.
Sony Open champion Nick Taylor continued his strong start to the season with a 67 to finish in a six-way tie for 12th place.
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