In 2010, TPC San Antonio ranked as the sixth hardest golf course played on the PGA Tour. In 2011, when all is said and done, the golf course this year may go down as THE toughest course on TOUR. The TPC San Antonio Oaks course is just flat-out tough. On top of the challenging greens and strong winds that blew all week, there is no wonder why 8-under par won this tournament. This is a far cry from the 18, 20, and lower scores that these pros shot at LaCantera before the tournament moved to TPC San Antonio.
PGA Tour rookie Brendan Steele outlasted the likes of Charley Hoffman, Brandt Snedecker, Charles Howell III, and Pat Perez to pick up his first victory on the PGA Tour. With a shaky final hole where Steele opted to lay up inside 250 yards instead of going for the green in two, then hitting his third shot just a bit long, he left himself about a six footer for par and sunk the putt to pick up his first victory.
I was out at the tournament all day Saturday and followed Steele for about 7 holes, and he hit the ball pretty solid all week. His 1-under 71 today was enough to hold off the field. Charley Hoffman had the best round going out of all the players who had a chance to win. He came up one club short on #18 green today when he tried to crush a 6-iron instead of hitting 5-iron to the back part of the green. His birdie put him in a T2 with Kevin Chappell, who shot a 2-under par round in the final round. Brandt Snedeker fell short as well, missing three good looks at birdie down the stretch.
The Valero Texas Open never seems to let people down. All day Saturday people seemed to be having a great time out at the course. In the end, the real winners are all the charities the tournament is able to help out, raising over $9 million this year for children’s causes.
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