South Surrey golfer Adam Svensson has his first win on the Web.com Tour, after winning the Great Abaco Classic in the Bahamas Wednesday.
Svensson – who earned his card for the Web.com tour after winning a qualifying tournament in 2015 – shot a four-round score of -17 at the Bahamas tournament, edging South Korea’s Sungjae Im by one stroke for first place.
The 24-year-old Earl Marriott Secondary alum shot three rounds of 68 – plus a third-round score of 67 – on the par-72 course in Great Abaco, Bahamas. Im missed a 10-foot putt on the final hole of the tournament that, had he sunk it, would have forced a head-to-head playoff-hole showdown between the two young golfers.
“It’s a relief,” said Svensson, who couldn’t see Im’s birdie bid. “Your heart is racing and when it’s over it slows down, and you realize what you’ve done. I’m just so thrilled I got the win and just so happy.”
Svensson, who now lives and golfs out of West Palm Beach, Fla., was chasing leader Willy Wilcox after three rounds, but his four-under par final round, coupled with a one-over par round from Wilcox – who ended up tied for fourth – vaulted him up the leaderboard in the final round.
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The victory – which came in Svensson’s 58th career Web.com event – was also a relief for Svensson, considering he missed the cut at two Bahamas events to start last year’s golf season, which put him in an uphill battle the rest of the way; ultimately, he finished one spot out of securing his PGA Tour card.
“It stings a little less (now),” he said, regarding missing out on his PGA card. “I’ve still got a lot of work to do going forward, but it’s nice.”
With the win, Svensson – who picked up $108,000 for the first-place finish – moves up to No. 2 on the Web.com Tour money list.
Nerves nearly got the best of the golfer down the stretch of Wednesday’s final round. On the 16th hole, he hooked his tee shot into trees on the left-hand side of the fairway, and was forced to take a drop (penalty). His ball then plugged into the sand, but he hit his third shot to within 33 feet of the hole, and drained a long putt to save par.
“That was wild,” he said. “I told my caddie, ‘I’m not leaving it short. It’s either in or it’s going by.'”
After a bogey on the 17th hole, he needed to birdie the 18th in order to secure the win. He again got himself in a little hot water, however – his second shot on the par-5 hole sailed to the right of the green, then his chip shot went past the pin, and just off the green. A long downhill putt on his next shot gave him a tap-in to finish at -17 for the tournament.
“I wasn’t trying to make it,” said Svensson, about his birdie putt on 18. “I knew I had to two-putt and somehow I just nestled it down there.”
Svensson’s victory drew the attention of another pro golfer with Semiahmoo Peninsula ties. After the win, PGA Tour pro Adam Hadwin – an Abbotsford native who lists Morgan Creek as his home course – tweeted his congratulations to Svensson.
“Keep doing your thing and we’ll see you here shortly,” he wrote.
