Thomas Detry had numerous chances to flinch on Sunday at the WM Phoenix Open. But he hardly blinked.
In search of his first career PGA Tour win — and first win on any tour since 2016 — the 32-year-old Belgian entered the final round with a five-shot lead. On a course known for late Sunday charges, Detry’s assignment was simple: stick to his strengths and don’t press when things start to heat up.
The first jolt came from world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who went out in 31 to climb within four. Jordan Spieth also cut the deficit to four with birdies at no. 5 and no. 7.
Detry hardly seemed fazed by the major champions attempting to nip at his heels.
After a roller-coaster birdie-bogey-birdie start, he steadied himself with seven straight pars. Then, he watched as Scheffler fell apart with a back-nine 41, and Spieth’s putter could not bail out his wayward driver.
But Detry still had one more former Ryder Cupper to vanquish to secure his maiden PGA Tour win: Daniel Berger.
Berger, who spent 18 months away from the PGA Tour to address debilitating back pain, is finally finding the form that saw him become one of the top players in the world in 2021. The 31-year-old American said Saturday that he hoped to put pressure on Detry early in the final round and see if the Belgian would stumble as the nerves ratcheted up.
Berger made good on his plan to turn the heat up. He cut the lead to three midway through the back nine and trimmed it to two with a birdie at the par-5 15th.
That stumble never arrived, though.
Detry poured in a birdie right on top of Berger at 15 to push the lead back to three before effectively ending the tournament by sticking his tee shot at the famed par-3 16th to 16 inches for another birdie.
Detry watched Beger hit a full nine-iron over the green, so he took a little bit off his nine and hit the shot of the tournament.
“Considering the circumstances, one of the best shots of the week and of my life,” Detry said after the round. “I mean, that shot was incredible. I don’t know how close it was to going in, but it was incredible.”
After adding another birdie at no. 17, Detry arrived at the final hole carrying a six-shot lead. There was nothing left to do but bask in the glow of his first PGA Tour win. The work had been. He had surgically picked apart The Stadium Course at TPC Scottsdale — gaining 1.79 shots on approach and 2.11 on the greens— brushed aside major champions and withstood one final charge from Berger.
He added a birdie at 18 to card a final-round 6-under 65 to finish at 24-under.
When the dust finally settled, Detry beat Berger and Michael Kim by seven shots. He bested Spieth and Christiaan Bezuidenhout by eight. With the win, he became the first player from Belgium to ever win on the PGA Tour.
“It’s incredible,” Detry told CBS’ Amanda Ballionis after the win. “It’s what dreams are made of. That last walk on the last hole was incredible. Everything goes so quickly that you don’t really have time to enjoy it — luckily, my caddie was there to tell me to enjoy the moment. It’s pretty special.
Detry has a pair of runner-up finishes in his PGA Tour career and finished tied for fourth at last year’s PGA Championship. He has been knocking on the door for some time.
On Sunday, in front of a raucous crowd at “The People’s Open,” he finally kicked it down.
“Being able to put a statement out like that is incredible. I’m just over the moon. I’m so happy.”
