Superb Connors Sunday 66...just a little too late.. Thomas steals the Players.. final scoreboard..

 Players Championship For final scoreboard  here

For Corey Connors it was just a little too late, for Justin  Thomas it was just enough...

Corey saved his best of the week, tying the low score of the day -6 66, while Justin Thomas whose 64 on Saturday got him from missing the cut to being in contention, had just enough with his birdie, birdie, eagle, birdie run around the turn to snatch this absorbing 2021 Players Championship from hard luck Lee Westwood who ended up a remarkable runner up for the second week in a row.

Thomas shot -4 68 -14 after standing on the 9th tee +1 on his round, before he found some magic that had so far been missing this season. By the time he made a birdie at 16 and a par at 17 and 18, nobody had enough holes left to catch him. He moves to #2 in the world and cashes $2.7 million for his efforts.

A scrambling Lee Westwood was in the water twice on a front nine 37 but was still in the lead, however his par at the par 5 16th, and bogey at 17, meant he'd need to hole out for eagle at the par 4 18th, his valiant birdie 72, -13 was just a shot shy.

Bryson DeChambeau topped his drive like any 18 handicapper into the water at the 4th, then hit a huge slice into the trees, lucky to escape with a double bogey six, out in 38, and despite an eagle at 16, he ran out of holes with a par par finish, 71 -12 3rd.

Special note to my man so far this year Paul Casey who shot 67 67 70 over the weekend to quietly finish T5 at -11 after a successful Desert swing that saw him with a win and a top 5 on the European Tour in the Middle East, before continuing his fine form this early 2021 season stateside. 

As for Corey Connors who I've featured here all week, he saved his best for Sunday, flag hunting from the start, and driving superbly. He was 9 shots out of the Lee Westwood lead beginning his round, after 3 birdies and a bogey 34 front nine, he went birdie, eagle, par, birdie to get to -6 on his round, and despite more birdie chances including the 16th where he was on in two, from 23 feet, he made a crucial 3 putt par, then on 18, he just missed birdie from 12 feet, and with a rueful shake of his head the big fellow from Listowel, went into the clubhouse with the lead at -10.

He finished 7th, for his second top 10 in a row, after his 3rd last week at Bay Hill, He moves up to #41 in the world and cashed a cheque for $506,250. He's made over a million in the last 2 weeks !! 

Next is a week off then the WGC Match Play in Austin Texas, the Valero Texas Open then the Masters followed by the RBC Heritage.

A busy time for Corey, who is fully ensconced amongst his peers on the PGA Tour, playing with great confidence as he moves forward with his career, President Cups, Olympics all in his future.

Having said all that, I'm sure there is a little voice in the back of his mind saying, "if I'd just made a couple more putts early last week, I played well enough to win this thing"...

That's golf.... "if if's and buts were candies and nuts we'd all have a wonderful Christmas"

Bryan Angus