Ted Potter Jr. took on the world No. 1 Sunday and never gave in, taking down Dustin Johnson and the rest of the field at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Potter Jr. was not considered a top-3 favorite entering the final round (though tied for the lead), and got off on the wrong foot with a bogey on the first hole. But as no other player reached any further than 15-under, Potter Jr. added four birdies on the front nine followed by 11-straight pars coming in to finish 17-under for an anti-climactic 3-shot victory.
Dustin Johnson, who began the day tied with Potter Jr. at 14-under, held the lead early on the front nine but made four bogeys against just four birdies in his first par-or-worse round at Pebble Beach in five years. Johnson and Potter were close on the 7th hole as they both flew the green with their approaches. Johnson chipped by the hole and Potter Jr. chipped in for a two-shot lead he would never give up.
The win was the second of Potter Jr.’s career and first since the 2012 Greenbrier Championship. He began the day as the 246th-ranked player in the world, and with the victory will now leap into the top 80, the highest mark of his career.
Phil Mickelson turned in the most impressive round of the day, a 6-birdie 67 in which he hit 11 of 14 fairways and finished tied for second. Though he has not won since the 2013 British Open, it was Mickelson’s second straight top-5 finish and third such result in the 2017-2018 season. Mickelson was joined by Jason Day, Chez Reavie and Johnson finishing three shots back of Potter Jr.
Kevin Streelman and Larry Fitzgerald took the Pro-Am championship by seven strokes, finishing 41-under on the week.
