Kisner defeats Kuchar to claim Match Play title

The next time you see Kevin Kisner smile on the golf course might be the first time — he’s never one to show much emotion. But if there was ever a time for him to break into a toothy grin, it was Sunday in the late afternoon Texas glare.

Kisner made winning seven matches in five days look like a walk in the park and barely broke a sweat as he rolled to a 3 & 2 victory over Matt Kuchar in the championship match of the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play in Austin, Texas.

Kisner captured his third PGA Tour victory, his first since winning the 2017 Dean & DeLuca Invitational in Fort Worth, Texas, and his first prestigious WGC title.

Along the way Kisner defeated golfers from England, China, South Africa, Italy and three from the United States while taming the demanding layout at Austin Country Club. He only played the 18th hole once this week — in Sunday morning’s 1-up semifinal win over Francesco Molinari of Italy.

“This might be the hardest tournament to win just because you have the physical aspect more than any other week,” Kisner said after finishing off Kuchar. “It was grueling, definitely with the winds, the temperature today. Overall it was a long week, but I prevailed.”

Kisner never trailed in the championship match, winning the first hole with a birdie, falling back into a tie with Kuchar after a bogey on the fifth, moving to 2-up with a birdie on the sixth and a Kuchar bogey on the seventh, and making the turn with a one-hole lead after a bogey on the ninth.

Kisner built his lead to 2-up when Kuchar hit his tee shot in the water on the par-3 11th for a double bogey. That advantage remained in place until Kuchar bogeyed the 15th, granting Kisner a 3-up lead with three holes to play. Kisner then matched Kuchar’s birdie on the 16th with a 21-foot putt to claim the title.

Kisner has played well in the past two years at this event, earning a spot in the finals in 2018 before falling to Bubba Watson, 7 & 6, in the championship match.

“I just learned a lot,” Kisner said of the lessons he gleaned from last year’s runner-up finish. “I learned about preparation. I learned not to get too amped up for that final. You still have to come out and play golf. I don’t think either one of us played our best golf this afternoon.”

Despite losing on Sunday afternoon, Kuchar moved to No. 1 in the FedExCup standings, passing Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland.

“Certainly not what I’m looking for — I gave too many holes away,” said Kuchar, won the event in 2013, when it was played in Arizona. “It’s one of the things I pride myself on is not ever giving holes away. I knew against Kisner I couldn’t do it, and he just plodded along and played good, steady golf, and let me make mistakes.”

Molinari captured third place in the event with a 4 & 2 victory over Denmark’s Lucas Bjerregaard. Molinari won for the sixth time in seven matches over the five days of competition, beating players from Japan, Denmark (twice), England and the United States (twice) in the process.

“It was definitely a positive week,” Molinari said. “Just a shame about this morning on the back nine I didn’t play my game and made too many mistakes, and kind of gave it away once, and then managed to fight my way back and then gave it away again. Like once wasn’t enough. But it’s golf and it’s a long week.”

Molinari never trailed in the consolation match, winning the first hole with a birdie and extending his lead to 2-up with another on the third. Bjerregaard won the fourth with a birdie but Molinari responded with birdies on the fifth and sixth to go 3-up.

The Dane won the seventh when Molinari bogeyed after missing the green off the tee on the par 3 but Bjerregaard returned the favor and then some via bogeys on the 10th and 12th holes, falling four holes behind with six to play.

Bjerregaard won the 13th hole when Molinari bogeyed before the two players parred both the 14th and 15th holes. Molinari then closed out the third-place match by parring the 16th.

Earlier in the day both Kisner and Kuchar survived tight battles in the semifinals to advance to the championship match. Kisner defeated Molinari 1-up in the first semifinal while Kuchar outlasted Bjerregaard, also 1-up, in the second final-four dustup.

After competing under mostly warm and benign conditions for the three days of pool play and then in wind and drizzle on Saturday for the Round of 16 and quarterfinals on Saturday, the four remaining golfers teed off with chilly temperatures in the low 40s on Sunday morning.

Molinari birdied the 16th and 17th holes to catch Kisner, who won it with a par at 18 when Molinari three-putted from 27 feet.

Kuchar never trailed in his match but also never led by more than 1-up against Bjerregaard, who beat Tiger Woods on Saturday on their final hole to advance to the semifinals.

The PGA Tour moves south down Interstate 35 next week for the Valero Texas Open in San Antonio.

–Field Level Media