J.J. Spaun captured his first title since the 2025 U.S. Open thanks to a clutch final round display at a weather-affected Valero Texas Open.
The 35-year-old American, who previously won this event for his maiden PGA TOUR title in 2022, came into the final round at TPC San Antonio chasing Scotland’s Robert MacIntrye who concluded his third round on Sunday after inclement weather conditions suspended play on Saturday.
In the final round, there were a host of players who were in contention in what was a tightly-congested contest which at one point witnessed seven players in a share of the lead.
England’s Matt Wallace put a marker down by setting the clubhouse target at 16 under but a sublime back-nine rally from Spaun which was finished off with a birdie at the 16th, eagle at the 17th, and a par putt at the last, saw him edge Wallace’s total as he carded a 5-under 67 to finish on 17 under, claiming his spot at the summit of the leaderboard.
MacIntyre, who teed off an hour later, looked to have already seen his chances of victory slip away following nine consecutive pars on the front nine. But his chances were redeemed after a confident eagle putt at the 17th which saw him one off leader Spaun heading into the last. But requiring a birdie to force a play-off, MacIntyre was unable to match or better the American’s score as he carded a 2-under 70 to remain a shot adrift of Spaun, securing the American his third career PGA TOUR title.
“This game is so crazy,” Spaun said, who had failed to finish within the top-10 in any of his PGA TOUR appearances this year coming into this event.
“I haven’t been feeling the form I wanted based on last season, and I’ve just been trying to take each day as it comes and accept what I have.
“There’s so much that comes with winning big events like a US Open or any major. I put a lot of pressure on myself to start the year, a lot of expectations.
“I went into the last few weeks, starting at The Players, trying to free myself up and put less pressure on myself. It’s been challenging, but sticking to that mantra has really helped me.”
Wallace and MacIntyre were joined by American Michael Kim in a share for second on 16 under while fellow American, Andrew Putnam, and Sweden’s Ludvig Aberg tied for fifth a shot further back on 15 under.
What is the next event?
The next event on the PGA TOUR schedule, following The Masters, is the RBC Heritage taking place between 16-19 April at Harbour Town Golf Link in South Carolina.