Reed Collects $1.14M

As the college football national championship was starting, TV viewers were able to click over to see the ending of the Tournament of Champions. The Ducks-Bucks contest in Dallas had nothing to do with a couple of Texans - Jimmy Walker and Patrick Reed - who battled it out in overtime to decide the $5.7 million PGA Tour event in Hawaii.

Reed, who closed with a 6-under 67 on the par-73 Plantation Course at Kapalua in Maui, finished tied with 54-hole leader Walker at 21-under 271. The 24-year-old San Antonio native then beat his 35-year-old compatriot with a birdie on the par-5 18th - the 73rd hole - to earn a whopping $1.14 million and 500 FedEx Cup points.

Reed closed out the proceedings Monday evening - as the game between Ohio State and Oregon started - with a birdie on the last. Walker had a one-stroke lead entering the 72nd hole but could only manage a par on the last to send the game into extra holes.

On the first extra hole, Reed canned a 20-foot putt for the birdie, while Walker - after over-hitting his third shot onto the steep upslope at the left side of the 18th green and couldn't get up and down from a bad lie - settled for a par.

Following his fourth Tour victory, the brash Reed - a sometimes-controversial figure who once confided to reporters he should be counted among the world's top-five players following his win in the WGC-Cadillac Championship last March, said after his win - which guarantees him a spot in next year's winners-only Tournament of Champions, still has an edge.

"I don't really think it's as much respect as it is I'm just going out there and just trying to play my game and trying to improve," Reed responded to a reporter's question about his cockiness. "There's a couple goals my coach and I have set, and we're just going to try to go out and get those and just improve day by day, and little things on the golf course with my game that I feel like I need to become one of the top players in the world.

"But you know, that takes time, and you know, I've done a pretty good job in the past - there's a long way to go, so hopefully (I) can move forward and go get it," concluded Reed.

On the other side of the equation was Walker, who came into the final round tied for the lead with Japan's Hideki Matsuyama, a Japanese player who closed with a 70 and missed a make-able birdie putt on the 18th that could have sent him too into the overtime session with Reed and Walker.

"Thoughts are it was there for me to win. It was a bummer I didn't close the door on it," lamented Walker, a three-time winner last season.

"I got to watch Patrick play the last couple of holes and had the chance on 18 to birdie and win it. Had a good look in the fairway and just didn't happen. I missed a couple of putts I should have made, on 14, 15; had a good look on 16. It had a lot of break on it, but it was a tough putt. But I should have made one of those two on 14 or 15. Bad tee shot on 14, but continued to drive it well, hit good shots where I needed to. Just a couple of putts."

Jason Day carded the low round of the tournament, a remarkable 11-under 62 that included seven birdies on the back nine, to finish tied for third with Matsuyama and Russell Henley.

Korea's Sang-Moon Bae had a 70 to end up in sixth; defending champion Zach Johnson finished with a flourish, posting a 6-under 67 to take seventh at 17-under 275.

For all the scores, visit http://www.pgatour.com/leaderboard.html.

Tweet