Kristoffer Reitan claimed a first PGA TOUR title of his career with a two-shot victory at a tightly-contested Truist Championship.
The 28-year-old Norwegian entered the final round at Quail Hollow Club a shot adrift of England’s Alex Fitzpatrick, the overnight leader. Seeking his first individual triumph following his success with brother Matt at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, Fitzpatrick was unable to find any rhythm during the front nine which featured a bogey at the second and double bogey at the third. But the Englishman roared back into contention following the turn with three birdies in four holes to tie for the lead which included four players.
But it ended up being a battle between Reitan and Fitzpatrick, and Reitan got the upper hand with back-to-back birdies at the 14th and 15th. From here onwards, Fitzpatrick was unable to catch the Norwegian and his chances were all but over when he made a double-bogey at the 17th to give Reitan a two-shot advantage heading into the last. Then at the 18th, Reitan went on to calmly two-putt the hole to post a final-round 69, finish on 15 under, and secure his first title on the PGA TOUR.
“A tremendous amount of relief and joy,” Reitan said afterwards. “I can’t put it into words, to be honest. Even today, I wasn’t quite expecting to walk away with the win, even though I was in a good position before today.
“I feel like it will happen if it happens. My only goal today was to free it up as much as I can to allow myself the chance to hit good shots. I’m so glad that I kept that focus the whole way through. I’m struggling to describe how I’m feeling right now.
“I love this place, it’s absolutely fantastic. I love the fact that it demands so much from your game, a historic venue. I’m super pleased to be walking away as the champion.”
Victory means he becomes only the second player from Norway to claim success on the circuit after Viktor Hovland.
Denmark’s Nicolai Hojgaard claimed runner-up alongside America’s Rickie Fowler with the pair ending on 13 under, while Fitzpatrick’s stumble at the end dropped him to fourth on 12 under.
What is the next event?
The next event on the PGA TOUR schedule is the PGA Championship taking place between 14-17 May at Aronimink Golf Club in Pennsylvania.