In the world of Professional golf
Echavarria Claims Cognizant Title Amid Lowry Throwaway
With a three shot lead and three hole to play, Shane Lowry had one hand on the CCITPM trophy, but an untimely double double, not NBA-related, siphoned his lead as Echavarria swooped in to steal the crown. Ironically, maybe not for some but, it was the first time Lowry has made back-to-back double bogeys on the PGA Tour, and it came while he was attempting to close out what would have been his first individual victory since 2022.
Instead, the Colombian came in at the perfect moment, birdieing the tough 17th by landing his tee shot precariously in between the water and the pin before a routine par on 18 to win by two.
Standing on 16 tee, Lowry had a 96.7% chance to win according to Data Golf, before he found the water with his 3-iron, the only wet ball on that hole on Sunday. But the Irishman still held the lead walking to 17, before another wipey fade succumbed to the strong breeze and found a watery grave.
Lowry was understandably shell shocked, as were the fans, as it had been a Sunday procession prior. And after Lowry’s history at PGA National for the Honda turned Cognizant Classic, it seemed suitable that he should finally notch a win round this track. In this decade alone, Lowry has gone second, T5, T4, T11 and now T2 at this event. The 38-year-old was bogey free on the front nine for the whole week and incidentally came home in level thanks to an eagle and two birdied prior to the collapse.
Echavarria now owns the same amount of PGA Tour wins as Lowry, although the latter’s includes his major win at the Open Championship on home soil in 2019, as well as a Zurich win which was played alongside Rory McIlroy. His only non-major individual title is the 2015 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone.
Colombian Nico astoundingly becomes the first player in their thirties to win on the PGA Tour in 2026 through seven events. The 31-year-old made the fewest bogeys of anyone in the filed with just three, all of which came in the second round. A weekend of two 66s, shoutout Mackenzie Hughes, propels Echavarria to the Masters where he finished 51st on debut last year. He is the first to earn an invite to Augusta through the PGA Tour’s confusing yet rewarding criteria this annum.
The two shot win comes after four missed cuts already this year, and a top 10 at Pebble Beach. Certainly, a streaky player, but he was indefinitely on this week and was on hand to breach at the perfect moment following Lowry’s chaotic surrender.
In joining Taylor Moore and Austin Smotherman in a tie for second at 15-under, Lowry’s struggles to get over the finish line is prolonged. In his last 13 times entering the final around in the top three, he has one win, his 2019 Open triumph where he led from the front for the duration.
Further down the leaderboard, there were signs of life from Brooks Koepka, who has recently switched to a mallet to conform to the feverish trend on tour. The returning member fired a final round 65 to sneak inside the top ten at ten under par, his best return in three starts.
Casey Jarvis Secures Consecutive Africa Wins
The 22-year-old South African, fresh off his win in Kenya last week, went back-to-back, this time in his native Rainbow State, to garner qualification for the Open Championship and a trip down Magnolia Lane. Jarvis honed a two-shot lead walking to the 18th tee before an hour-long rain/lightning delay iced the finale.
He proceeded to pretty much top his drive. But was able to execute a strong iron shot into the green and then putted tow thin tap in range to close the deal and let out a monumental exhale. A hugely impressive feat from the youngster, consecutive national opens, and the second in his home country of South Africa.
The 14-under par total was three clear of a trio of runners up, which included Frederic Lacroix and Francesco Laporta, essentially French and Italian doppelgangers, and Hennie Du Plessis. The latter hit his approach into the last into the water hazard to drop back into a tie. Heartbreakingly, Laporta and Lacroix receive an Open Championship spot, with Du Plessis missing out due to his lesser World Ranking in the crooked OWGR. He will be rueing that iron into 18 if he fails to qualify for Royal Birkdale between now and July.
Jarvis, who splits his time between the DP World and Sunshine Tour, has one previous major appearance, where he missed the cut at the 2024 US Open. A chance at redemption, albeit Augusta and Birkdale, not Pinehurst, but Jarvis has more than earned his chance, displaying just what can be accomplished in a fortnight.
