What a weekend it was for the golf fans! The Genesis Invitational concluded, and beautifully too! The $20M event showcased adverse weather, and top golfers competing for the coveted spot. Swede Ludvig Aberg won his second PGA Tour event, but Maverick McNealy who won his first PGA Tour event in 2024 at the RSM Classic remained short of just one stroke to claim his second.
Despite the heartbreak, the professional won the hearts of many with his birdies spree in the final round. He started off the fourth round with a par putt. However, the pace eventually picked up for him where he recorded 9 birdies in the next 12 holes. Out of which 5 were consecutive. But as the spree of birdies took a halt, Aberg took the opportunity away from McNealy.
After finishing 11 under par as the final score, the golfer definitely deserved praise. Some came from Justin Thomas. JT took on X to praise McNealy writing, “Just went back thru the day after thinking about that round by Mav I got to witness first-hand today. If we would’ve played a match. I would have been 1 up through 1….. then lost the next 10 consecutive holes to holes 9 & 8 holy smokes!!!!”
For anyone less familiar with match-play scoring, a 9&8 victory would mean McNealy was nine holes ahead with only eight to play. The hypothetical match is over since Thomas literally did not have enough holes left to overcome the deficit. Pretty funny, right? While McNealy put on the show at Torrey Pines, Thomas did nothing so. He started with a birdie on his first hole, and added two more to his count on the 17th, and 18th, to finish T9.
Now replying to the praise, the 29-year-old has thanked and hinted at the duo’s future appearance with a coded reply. He wrote, “All I saw was a best-ball 60 between u… maybe that could come in handy in NY sometime this fall.” Maybe both golfers can be seen representing the Team US at the Bethpage this year at the Ryder Cup. After all, Team USA will need all the talent, as Europeans have won last four events on the PGA Tour.
Well after his performance, billionaire McNealy was happy. “It was really fun. It’s really fun when the ball’s coming off exactly like you want, when you’re standing over a putt and you feel like it’s just going to go in. It’s one of those things you get on a roll, you know it’s going to come to an end at some point but you just want to extend is as much as possible,” he told the media. He should be happy too. After all, he had a significant jump in the U.S. points solidifying his participation chances at the Ryder Cup.
Maverick McNealy’s rank after the Genesis Invitational performance
A Ryder Cup rookie, who seems hopeful for his appearance at the event, has moved up significantly after his last performance at the Genesis Invitational. Including his runner-up finish, he has recorded a total of three top-10 finishes. One came two weeks ago at the Phoenix Open where he was placed at tied 9th.
The close finishes have helped the golfer find a place in the top 5 for the Ryder Cup standings. He got an 8-place boost after his runner-up finish. With 3990.49 points, he is placed above Patrick Cantlay and Tony Finau. While the top four are the golf stars who have a huge points difference to cover. 1. Scottie Scheffler (10949.75), 2. Xander Schauffele (9718.46), 3. Bryson DeChambeau (6993), and 4. Collin Morikawa (5180.85).
The boost in the ranking and confidence is going to be the key to Maverick McNealy. It will be interesting to see if he can win a title this year after his substantial form. What are your thoughts on it? Share with us in the comments section below.
The post ‘Come in Handy’: PGA Tour Pro Sends Justin Thomas a Subtle Message As He Commented on His Near Win at Torrey Pines appeared first on EssentiallySports.