Page 15 - aruba-today-20210119

A15
sports Tuesday 19 January 2021
Kevin Na has a big finish and wins the Sony Open

By DOUG FERGUSON I expect to win on the right
AP Golf Writer golf courses.”
HONOLULU (AP) — The Kirk and Joaquin Niemann
spoils at the Sony Open be- (66) finished one shot be-
longed to Kevin Na, a win- hind, and it only felt good
ner for the fourth straight to one of them. Niemann
season after coming from was runner-up for the sec-
three shots behind with six ond straight week in Ha-
holes to play for a one-shot waii. He finished the two
victory with a birdie on the Hawaii events at 45-under
final hole. par without a trophy to
The consolation prize be- show for it.
longed to Chris Kirk, and it “Just another good week,
felt like a win. so happy for that,” Nie-
Kirk stepped away in May mann said. He leaves Ha-
2019 because of alcohol- waii with $1,369,400 in earn-
ism and depression, a deci- ings.
sion he feels saved himself, “I think experience is the
his family and his career. reason why I’ve been win-
He was playing the final ning,” he said. “When you
event of a medical exten- do it again, you know it
sion the PGA Tour award- seems like the next one
ed him for lost time, and he comes easier. ... I think
delivered a 65 to finish one more about winning since
shot behind. Kevin Na, left, embraces caddie Kenneth Harms after winning the final round of the Sony Open I’ve been winning more
golf tournament Sunday, Jan. 17, 2021, at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu.
The birdie on the final hole Associated Press often.”q
gave him enough points to
regain full status.
“It totally changes every-
thing being able to be
back to picking my sched-
ule like I’m used to over the
last number of years,” Kirk
said. “To go into a week
and say I’ve got to finish
top three to keep going
and do is silly. I’m thankful
God put me in a great situ-
ation, and you never know
what’s going to happen.”
Na could have felt similarly.
The Sony Open is typically
so crowded at the top that
no one is safe and no one
is ever out of it. Na only
looked to be out of it when
he missed a 6-foot birdie
putt on the 11th and then
three-putted for bogey
from 40 feet on the 12th
to fall three shots behind
Brendan Steele.
He answered with three
straight birdies, Steele fal-
tered at Waialae for the
second straight year, and
Na delivered the winning
shot with a 5-wood from
the rough that went just
over the back of the green
on the par-5 18th, leaving
him a simple up-and-down
for birdie and a a 5-under
65.
“I was playing maybe a
little bit more aggressive
coming down the stretch,
not worrying so much
about second or third,
more focused on just that
— winning,” Na said. “Ev-
ery year, I hope to win and